Challenge pattern

Question a connection that looks too obvious, to find the conditions and hidden causes behind it.

Purpose

Test the connections the group drew quickly. An arrow that everyone agreed on in seconds may hide a condition or a third factor that matters more than the arrow itself.

When to use it

• During Connect, after the first pass of connections is on the board.
• When connections look too neat, or the group agrees on everything too fast.
• When paths run straight from root / problem to action / intervention to desired state / outcome with nothing in between, a sign of the shortcut.

Timing

No timing guidance has been established yet. Each challenge takes a few minutes of discussion.

Steps

1. Pick a connection that seems obvious.

2. Ask the group:

   Is this always true? Are there cases where this does not lead to that?

3. Follow up:

   What would have to change for this connection to break?

4. Add any condition or intermediate cause the group names as a new node, and redraw the arrows through it.

5. If nothing new comes up, keep the connection as it is and move on.

Tips

• Challenge connections, not people. Point at the arrow on the board, not at whoever drew it.
• Pick connections the whole group agreed on. Those are the ones nobody has questioned yet.

Traps

• Challenging every arrow. The group loses energy and Connect never ends. Challenge a few connections, chosen deliberately.
• Turning the challenge into a debate about whether the arrow means "causes" or "influences." Keep relationship semantics loose during Connect.

Variations

No variations are known yet.

Example

No worked example has been documented yet.