How to play
LateralDeck works best when everyone knows what to expect. Share this page with your team before your first session, or read it yourself before you facilitate.
A session takes 15–20 minutes. You need a problem worth thinking about and at least 3 people willing to think differently about it.
Before you start
Write a good problem statement
The quality of your session depends almost entirely on the quality of the question you bring to it. A vague question produces vague thinking.
A good problem statement is:
- Specific enough to focus the thinking
- Open enough to allow unexpected answers
- Honest — it reflects the real problem, not a sanitised version of it
Good examples:
- "How do we reduce customer churn in the first 30 days without increasing support costs?"
- "What would have to be true for us to double revenue without hiring anyone new?"
- "How do we make our onboarding feel less like a form and more like a welcome?"
Avoid:
- "How do we grow?" — too vague
- "Should we launch in Germany?" — yes/no questions close thinking down
- "How do we fix the problem marketing created?" — leading questions anchor the group before it starts
Setting up
The facilitator creates the session
The facilitator — usually the meeting host or team lead — goes to LateralDeck and clicks "Start a session." They enter the problem statement, choose a card mode, and set the thinking time.
Three modes are available:
Classic — 12 lateral thinking cards, each with a different technique. Good for any problem, any team.
Colour Thinking — Each person is randomly assigned one of four cognitive colour styles from the Insights Discovery model. Cards are designed for that thinking style. Good for teams who want to understand how differently they naturally approach problems.
6+1 Hats — Based on Edward de Bono's Six Thinking Hats, extended to seven. Each person gets a different hat — a different role to play in the thinking. Good for structured analysis where you want every angle covered.
Ideal group size is 3 to 7 people. Below 3, there is not enough diversity of perspective. Above 7, the sharing round becomes too long.
Joining
Share the link — everyone joins
Once the session is created, the facilitator copies the session link and shares it — in the Zoom chat, Slack, Teams, or wherever the team is gathered.
Each person clicks the link and enters their name. They land on the session waiting screen, where they can see who else has joined.
The facilitator can see everyone who has joined in real time. When the group is ready, the facilitator clicks "Deal cards."
Silent reflection
Read your card. Think alone.
When cards are dealt, each person receives their card privately. The timer starts.
This is the most important step — and the one most teams want to skip.
Do not talk. Do not share your card yet. Do not react to what others might be saying. Read your prompt and think about the problem through the lens you have been given, even if it feels unfamiliar or uncomfortable. Especially if it feels unfamiliar or uncomfortable.
The constraint is the point. You were not given this card because it is your natural style. You were given it to show you a view of the problem you would not have found on your own.
Default thinking time is 1 minute. For complex problems, the facilitator can extend this to 3 minutes before the session starts.
If you receive a card that feels completely disconnected from your problem — good. Sit with the discomfort. Interpret it loosely. The most useful prompt is often the one that seems least relevant at first.
The reveal
Everyone flips at the same time
When the timer ends, the facilitator clicks "Reveal all." Every card flips simultaneously.
This matters. Sequential reveals let the first person's framing influence everyone who follows. Simultaneous reveal means every perspective arrives with equal weight — the most senior person's card has no more gravity than the quietest person's.
Take a moment to read what everyone received before the sharing begins.
The sharing round
Each person shares. No discussion yet.
Going around the group, each person shares what their card made them think about the problem. They have 60 to 90 seconds.
The rules for this round are simple and non-negotiable:
No interruptions. No "yes, but." No questions. No reactions — verbal or visible — until everyone has finished.
The facilitator's job during this round is to protect the silence between speakers. The temptation to respond, agree, or challenge is strong. Resist it. The value of this round comes from hearing every perspective before any of them are evaluated.
If someone finishes in 20 seconds, that is fine. If someone needs 2 minutes, let them have it. The goal is authentic expression, not performance.
Synthesis
Harvest the connections
Once everyone has shared, the facilitator opens the discussion with three questions:
- "What surprised you in what you heard?"
- "What connections do you see across the different perspectives?"
- "What is the one idea from this round you most want to explore?"
This is where the session pays off. The lateral thinking has happened in the silent reflection. The synthesis is where the group finds what it could not have found if anyone had spoken first.
The facilitator does not need to have answers. Their job is to create the space for the group to find them.
Going further
Run another round
A single round takes 10 to 15 minutes. If the group has energy and the problem warrants it, run a second round.
Deal new cards — everyone gets a different lens. You can keep the same problem statement or refine it based on what emerged in the first round. A refined question after one round of lateral thinking is often sharper and more honest than the original.
Most teams find that two rounds is the right amount for a meeting context. Three rounds is a full workshop.
A few notes for facilitators
- You do not need to understand the cards before the session. The participants will find their own meaning. Your job is to protect the process, not direct the content.
- The silence is the hardest part to hold. When nobody is talking, the instinct is to fill the space. Don't. Ten seconds of silence after a share is normal and healthy.
- If someone says "I don't understand my card" — tell them to interpret it however feels right. There is no wrong answer. The constraint is the point.
- If your most senior stakeholder speaks first during sharing — gently remind the group that the round goes in order and everyone speaks before discussion opens. Frame it as the rules of the game, not a personal correction.
- The first session is always the roughest. Run it twice before you judge it.
Ready to run your first session?
It takes less than a minute to set up. No account required.