Life Stories

Instructions for the leader

Activity: Rapid Life Narrative & Follow-Up Dyad Pair up participants into dyads, designating Speaker and Listener roles for Round 1. Pre-Activity Guidance: Frame the game as a exercise in narrative synthesis and focused inquiry. Emphasize how constraining time to 60 seconds forces storytellers to identify their core life arc. Structure & Rules: 60-Second Life Story: Speaker delivers their entire life story in exactly 60 seconds. Curious Follow-Up: Listener shares what resonated most, then asks exactly one curious follow-up question, which Speaker answers in 60 seconds. Role Switch: Swap roles and repeat the process. Second Edition: Repeat the entire exercise, but instruct storytellers to tell a completely different version/perspective of their life story in 60 seconds. Timing: 2 minutes per round x 2 roles x 2 iterations = 8 minutes total.