Identity Deck

Instructions: There are two primary ways to facilitate The Common Good Agency Identity Deck experience: by the time allotted for the practice or by the number of Identity Cards you ask each person to select. The facilitator should determine which method works best for the desired outcomes of the activity. It is helpful to share the directions verbally and post a visual copy in the space.

CGA Identity Deck Experience by Time

  1. Distribute a CGA Identity Deck to each person in the group. Ask participants to select as many identity cards from the deck that they identify with that day. Encourage them to select cards that most resonate with them as it relates to the context, role or group that you want them to focus on during the learning experience (e.g. workplace, committee, volunteer role, family, etc.). Provide 5-10 minutes for participants to individually review all of the identity cards and let them know the group will come back together to share. 
  2. Determine the remaining amount of time you have for the group to engage in the activity. Decide if you would like people to share in one large group or in several small groups to allow each person more time and to encourage deeper connection. Determine the number of time slots you need based on whether it is a full group share-out or a small group share-out (e.g. you will need time slots for each person present for a full group share-out but would only need time slots for the number of people in each breakout group for the small group share-out). Divide the remaining time after the 10-minute opening by the number of timeslots required to determine how long each person has to share.
  3. Invite each person to share the identity cards they have selected with the full group or their small group in the allotted number of minutes you have per person. They can share an identity development story—showcasing critical moments tied to the identity cards they have selected—or just say a bit about why that identity feels salient in the current moment.
  4. Be sure to pay attention to the timer and keep the sharing equal across each person by politely asking participants to wrap up once their allotted time has passed.  

CGA Identity Deck Experience by Selected Identities

  1. Determine how many identities you would like each participant to highlight during the exercise.
  2. Distribute a CGA Identity Deck to each person in the group. Ask participants to select a given number of identity cards from the deck that they most identify with that day. Encourage them to select cards that most resonate with them as it relates to the context, role or group that you want them to focus on during the learning experience (e.g. workplace, committee, volunteer role, family, etc.). Provide 5-10 minutes for participants to individually review all of the identity cards and let them know the group will come back together to share. 
  3. Decide if you would like people to share in one large group or in several small groups to allow each person more time and to encourage deeper connection. Either bring the full group back together or break out into small groups based on your decision. 
  4. Invite each person to share an identity development story, showcasing critical moments tied to the identity cards they have selected. They may also just share the cards they have selected. They can also just say a bit about why that identity feels salient in the current moment.
  5. Because all individuals share in different ways and at different paces, it is helpful to be cognizant of equitable time for sharing. If people are taking up too much time based on the size of the group, please politely encourage them to wrap up. 

A few tips: 

  • For the CGA Identity Deck exercise, small groups of 4-7 are ideal. If you choose to facilitate one large group, limit the exercise to 10-12 people total.
  • In larger groups, consider allocating three to seven minutes per person to share. In groups larger than 10, you may want to limit stories to four minutes or less. 
  • In small group experiences, if your breakout groups have less than eight people each, you can have each person share for approximately four minutes each, and still complete the activity in less than forty-five minutes. 
  • Additionally, if you facilitate the CGA Identity Deck exercise in dyads or triads, you could complete this exercise in 10 to 20 minutes with folks having three to seven minutes each. 
  • The choices a facilitator needs to make should focus on the number of people in the group, how much time can be allocated based on the agenda, and managing for everyone sharing at a slower or faster pace than others.