1-2-4-All: hear from everyone in 12 minutes

1-2-4-All is a way to get ideas from every person in a group, however big, without one or two people taking over. People think alone first, then talk in pairs, then in fours, then share with everyone. It comes from Liberating Structures, a menu of more than 30 simple patterns for meetings put together by Henri Lipmanowicz and Keith McCandless, and it's the one most facilitators learn first.

It fixes two common problems at once. Open discussion is too loose: the fast talkers go first and everyone else adjusts to them. Presentations are too top-down: nobody else gets a word in. 1-2-4-All sits in between.

How to run it

Keep the times tight. A minute alone feels short, and that's fine; it's enough to have something to say. On a call, give a bit more time for pairs and fours (four minutes each) to cover the breakout room shuffle.

Good questions for 1-2-4-All

The question does most of the work. It should be open, specific and about something people know from their own experience.

• What's one thing we could do to make onboarding less overwhelming for new staff?
• What did you notice in the role-play that you'd do differently next time?
• What's getting in the way of us hitting this target?
• What would our members say we do best, and worst?
• What opportunities do you see that we haven't talked about yet?

What to say

• Opening: "I'm going to ask one question, and we're going to answer it in four rounds: alone, in pairs, in fours, then all together. That way we hear from everyone."
• Moving from 2 to 4: "Join with another pair. Share what you came up with, and look for what's the same and what's surprising."
• Sharing out: "One idea per group that stood out. If someone already said yours, tell us something new instead."

Online, in breakout rooms

1-2-4-All arguably works better online than in a room, because pairs and fours can't hear each other and nobody has to move chairs.

1. Silent minute in the main room, with cameras on or off.
2. Breakout rooms of two for the pairs round.
3. Close the rooms, then open new rooms of four. Mixing people up again is fine; nobody needs to stay with their pair.
4. Back to the main room for All. Ask each group to type its one idea in the chat first, then invite a few people to say more.

A shared whiteboard where each group of four adds its idea gives everyone a record to take away.

Common mistakes

• Skipping the silent minute. It's the step that lets quieter people arrive at the pair with something ready.
• Asking every group of four to report everything. You'll spend 20 minutes on repeats. One idea each, and "only what's new".
• A vague question like "Any thoughts on the strategy?" It gets vague answers.
• Running it for something that needs a decision. 1-2-4-All generates and surfaces ideas. Follow it with dot voting or fist to five to decide.

Run it with Claryoo

After the All round, put the top ideas into a live poll and let everyone pick, by typing in the meeting chat or tapping on their phone in a room. For the share-out, pick a volunteer at random to speak for each group, so it isn't always the most confident person.

More to watch

• Liberating Structures : 1-2-4-ALL, The AI Transition (4 min): the steps, and why it works better in breakout rooms than in a room.
• Liberating Structures Workshop, Ryan Ripley at Agile2019 (31 min): a live workshop using 1-2-4-All and other structures.
• 1-2-4-All is the engine of What, So What, Now What, the debrief that runs each question through the same four rounds.