In a nutshell

A simple but powerful structure for engaging everyone in meaningful reflection, idea generation, and group dialogue—no matter the size of the group. 

Individuals start alone, then join in pairs, then fours, then as a whole – hence the name 1, 2, 4, All.

Activity Flow

One: Silent self-reflection (1 minute)
Pose a shared challenge or open-ended question. Examples:

• “What opportunities do you see for making progress on this?”

• “What ideas or actions would you recommend?”
  Everyone reflects and jots down their thoughts—quietly, individually.

Two: Pair up and share (2 min)
People form pairs. They share and build on their ideas with each other.

Four: Pairs join pairs (4 min)
Foursomes share ideas, noting similarities, differences, and surprises.
Ask: “What’s emerging?” “What’s standing out?”

All: Whole group discussion (5 min)
Each foursome shares one key idea that stood out. In large groups, limit to a few shares and harvest the rest via sticky notes or a visual capture.

Repeat the cycle if energy is high or the group wants to go deeper.

Allow extra time – sometimes even twice as much.

Results

• Everyone gets to speak, think, and contribute—no exceptions

• Surfaces a greater diversity of insights

• Encourages safe, distributed conversation

• Prevents groupthink and over-dominance

• Builds shared understanding and ownership naturally

• Works well for problem-solving, feedback, idea generation, and reflection

Riffs & Variations

• Go from groups of 4 to 8 for deeper consensus (a variation called Octopus)

• Use sticky notes or index cards in each phase to capture and cluster ideas

• Great follow-up structure after a presentation—use instead of “Any questions?”

• Link into processes like Open Space, World Cafe – any self-organising activity

• Use graphic recording during the final share to make ideas visible and energising

Use this when you want to:

• Engage group sense-making at scale

• Support better decisions and idea generation

• Unstick a stuck conversation “What’s really going on here?”