March 2026
Community
“The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.”
– Coretta Scott King
BUILDING COMMUNITY EXERCISE
INTRO:
Communities are not built by good intentions — they are built by intentional investments in behaviors that overcome real barriers.
SUPPLIES NEEDED:
Behavior Cards (10 Building/10 Barrier — included in your envelope this month)
Post It Poster Sheet
Sticky Notes (2 Colors — ideally the same two colors for each table)
Tape
INSTRUCTIONS:
Pre-set the room
Tape the 10 Building Behaviors and 10 Barrier Behaviors
Have people sit in groups at tables. Ideal number is 3-5 per table.
PROMPT TO TEAM:
Think about the best community you've been a part of. What elements made it great?
Capture their answers on a post it poster sheet.
Now, distribute sticky notes! Each table gets two colors.
Ask each group to write 3-4 behaviors/actions/attitudes that build community on one color, and 3-4 behaviors/actions/attitudes that create barriers to community on the other color.
While the groups are completing this portion of the exercise, tape up the Building and Barrier Behavior cards on a whiteboard/wall/somewhere the entire room can see them.
Have the groups share their building behaviors, classifying them into the 10 suggested behaviors provided.
Then, have the groups share their barrier behaviors, classifying them into the 10 suggested behaviors provided (if a behavior does not fit in one provided, create an "other" category for them to go in).
Let the groups know that they are going to design their community at their table. To start though, they have to deal with barriers.
Pass out 2-3 Barrier Cards per table.
Announce that there will now be an Auction for the Building Behaviors! Give groups a few minutes to strategize about the behaviors they want to bid on that will help them overcome the barriers they have been given. All groups start with $100 in fake currency.
PROMPT TO TEAM:
You now have to decide how to invest in behaviors that will allow your community to thrive despite these challenges.
Open the bidding at $5 and let teams vie for the behaviors one at a time. Tables raise their paddle to bid on their desired behaviors. For larger groups, consider "selling" each behavior 2 or 3 times at the highest price if other teams also want to purchase it. Keep track of how much each team has spent on a spreadsheet (It will be helpful to have someone other than the auctioneer keeping track of how much has been spent). For added fun, have it in full view on a screen how much each team has left in their bank.
Added Twist: Midway through, announce that there have been budget cuts due to economic headwinds and every team now has $10 or $20 less to spend.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
What was your strategy?
What behaviors got the highest bids? Why?
What behaviors were undervalued? Why?
What do these behaviors cost in real life? (time, vulnerability, trust, effort, etc)
What barriers exist within our organization?
What building behaviors do we need to invest in at our organization?
CLOSING:
Community isn't built by values written on a wall. It’s built by the behaviors we choose to invest in.
Ask everyone for their takeaway from the exercise. Then have everyone write one thing they will personally bring to strengthen our community on a post it poster sheet that can hang in your building.