#183 When Teams Get in a Rut, Great Facilitators Play a Wildcard

When a team gets stuck—circling the same ideas without progress—the pressure is on the facilitator to do something. In this episode of the Humanizing Work Show, we share one of the most effective moves we’ve found to break that cycle: using a wildcard.

You’ll hear two real stories of teams that were stuck for weeks—one from Intel’s leadership in the 1980s, and one from Peter’s own experience coaching a Scrum team. In both cases, it wasn’t brute force or analysis that created the breakthrough—it was a surprising new input that shifted the team’s thinking.

We’ll explain what wildcard techniques are, why they work from a brain science perspective, and how you can start using them in your meetings right away. If you're a Scrum Master, Agile coach, or facilitator, this one's for you.

Resources from this episode:

• Episode page: humanizingwork.com/wildcards-episode
• Want to share a challenge or suggest a topic? Email us at [e-mail]
• Connect with us on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/humanizingwork