Icebreakers for introverts: nobody put on the spot
Our rule of thumb for an icebreaker quiet people won’t dread: nobody speaks to the whole room, everyone gets time to think, and there’s something to talk about other than yourself. Here are six formats that fit, and every one of them lets people sit out.
Six low-pressure formats
- Pairs before groups. Two minutes with one other person, then swap. Nobody has an audience.
- Write first, talk second. Everyone writes an answer on a slip, the slips go in a bowl, and someone reads them out without names.
- This or that, with your feet. Call out two options and people walk to one side of the room. You find out who agrees with you without saying a word.
- Show one photo. Everyone picks a photo on their phone and tells one other person the story behind it.
- Give people a job. Keeping score, handing out drinks or choosing the music gives a quiet person a reason to talk to everyone.
- Pass one phone. In Type & Stars, each person answers 8 questions alone, in about a minute, while the phone is in their hands. Then every pair’s score is revealed, and people talk about the score rather than themselves. The scores are seen by the group, so ask first.
What to skip
In our experience the formats that go worst with a quiet crowd are going round the room for introductions, “tell us a fun fact” and anything where one person performs while everyone watches. They aren’t wrong for every group, but they suit the people who were going to talk anyway.
Introverts and extroverts in the same round
The game’s first personality dimension is E/I, but a quiet person and a loud one don’t automatically score low together. When the two differ on it, the reason the game usually gives is: “One radiates, one absorbs — the rhythm works.” If you want the back story on how people came to ask about this, read our short history of the question.
Questions
Does the game make anyone speak up?
Not to answer. Each person answers alone on the phone. The talking starts when the scores come out, and how much anyone joins in is up to them.
How small can the group be?
Two is enough. For two people who aren’t in the same room, use a match link.
* For entertainment and ice-breaking only. Not a psychological assessment and not a prediction of any kind.