# Two Truths and a Lie — Facilitator Run Sheet

> Folder: `two-truths` · Category: icebreakers · 8–20 people · 15 min · offline + online · no props · assessment-type
> License: CC BY 4.0

The classic getting-to-know-you game, rebuilt with two guardrails that make it safe for professional rooms: every statement must be a **public fact** (work-relevant, checkable), and the group votes **eyes closed** — no public guessing that embarrasses anyone.

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## Objectives

By the end of the activity, participants will have:

1. Learned **three checkable facts** about every colleague in the room.
2. Watched their own first impressions get **beaten by at least one lie**.
3. Practiced the boundary rule: **personal life stays out unless offered**.

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## Setup

**Space:** a circle of chairs, or one shared video call. Nothing else.

**Materials for the game:** none. The folder adds printable measure materials — an answer sheet, a workbook and a slide deck — none of which the circle itself needs. The boundary rule and the eyes-closed script live in this run sheet.

**Grouping rule:** the whole group together. Over 12 people, split into two circles and alternate rounds.

**The boundary rule — say it out loud:** "All three statements are public facts about your work life: projects, skills, first jobs, countries worked in. Nothing about health, family or finances unless you offer it."

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## Minute-by-minute script

| Time | Phase | Facilitator does | Participants do |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–2 | Frame + boundary rule | State the rule above. "The goal is not to fool people — it's to learn three facts about everyone." | Listen |
| 2–4 | You go first | Model it: your two truths and one lie, all work-facts | Guess you, calibrate |
| 4–12 | Rounds | Each speaker: 3 statements, then "eyes closed — raise hands for A, B or C" | Speak, vote, reveal, one line of story |
| 12–14 | The surprise tally | "Whose lie fooled the most people? Whose truth did nobody believe?" | Laugh, point |
| 14–15 | Bridge | "Remember one fact per person — you'll need it in the debrief." | Transition |

For a 15-minute energizer, stop here and run the light debrief from `two-truths-debrief.md` (5 minutes). For a deeper session, chain directly into another folder.

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## Known failure modes & rescues

1. **Someone's lie is too good.** A senior manager claims they "never worked in sales" — the room cannot recover. Rescue: after the reveal, ask them for the one-line true story behind a truth. The story matters more than the score.
2. **A statement crosses the privacy line.** Rescue: cut in before the vote — "public facts only — want to swap that one?" Give an easy exit, no lecture.
3. **Big group, dead time.** Waiting 40 seconds per person bores the room. Rescue: split into two circles at 12+ people, or switch to "table rounds" of 4 with a one-minute timer.

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## Variations

- **Two truths about the project, one lie:** for teams that already know each other — statements must be about the current project's history. The debrief writes itself.
- **Online:** statements in chat, vote with emoji reactions (A/B/C), reveal on mic. Add a 20-second timer per speaker.
- **Reverse round:** after everyone has gone, each person must recall one fact they learned about someone else. Recall, not score, is the goal.

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## Props in this folder

- `two-truths-guide.md` — this run sheet
- `two-truths-debrief.md` — 6 debrief questions, 3 failure modes
- `two-truths-run-sheet.pdf` — the print edition: guide + debrief bound as one A4
- `two-truths-assessment.json` — the 4-row pre/post measure as plain JSON
- `two-truths-paper-form.pdf` — the A4 answer sheet: first block before the circle, second after the debrief
- `two-truths-workbook.pdf` — participant workbook: the rules in plain words, the measure, debrief notes
- `two-truths-slide-deck.pdf` — the slide deck for teaching or projecting
- `two-truths-slide-deck.html` — the same deck for any browser, speaker notes on N
- `two-truths-license.md` — what you may do with all of this, in plain language
- `two-truths-activity-poster.pdf` — The whole activity on one wall (A3): meta, run of show, debrief questions, watch-outs.
- `two-truths-start-here.md` — one page, thirty seconds, then print and go
- `SKILL.md` — machine-readable manifest for AI agents
- `two-truths-run-sheet.pdf` — the print edition: this run sheet + the debrief sheet, bound as one A4 PDF

## Agent version

Every file in this folder has a stable public URL — an AI agent can fetch the guide, the debrief and the answer sheet with three curl commands (see `SKILL.md`). The game itself needs nothing but a circle of chairs and the boundary rule.