The Letters to the Future activity is appropriate for when the team needs to look ahead and think about the future, thinking about what they expect to happen in a given time frame.
Running the activity:
- Ask participants to think about the given context and to individually choose a person for whom they would like to send a letter in the future (it can be the product owner, project manager, another team member; whoever they think is appropriate).
- Ask participants to individually write a short letter to that person, saying whatever they want. The letter should have a date in the future.
- Read the letters out loud, discuss, and consider keeping them for the future.
Leaving the addressee open will give space for each participant to send the letter to different people. Some will send it to the company’s CEO, others will think about a manager, and some may send the letter to the team. The diversity of addressees, dates, and letter content uncovers different perspectives for the team’s future.
Remote-team advice: This activity works well for remote teams. Ask participants to write the letter in their favorite text editor, share it with everyone else, and save it for future reference.