Method guide · Arrange people and ideas
Blind-spot Gallery
Collect anonymous missing perspectives on proposals, then assign the next observations before judging the proposals.
- People
- 6–50
- Base procedure time
- 30 minutes
- Recording
- Shared record
Purpose: Generate ideas; Explore through dialogue.
English guide
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How this method works
A gallery-style conversation method for anonymously collecting only what has been overlooked in each proposal. Use it where proposers keep explaining and opponents find it hard to speak, or rushing to solutions leaves gaps in assumptions. Participants silently walk between proposals and write only missing perspectives, not solutions, on cards. Grouping anonymous cards by proposal shifts attention from who is criticising to the gaps that need testing. The result is overlooked-point cards classified for each proposal and the next points to test. Before judging which proposals are better, assign who will observe the blind spots and when. Do not use it for emergencies or where anonymous writing would encourage avoidance of responsibility.
Phase schedule
Minutes are cumulative from the start of the base plan, not a live timer. Read scaling for any additional time. Phase controls do not advance automatically.
Use the arrow keys, Home or End while these controls have focus. The complete phase schedule remains below, including without JavaScript.
- Display proposals0–4 minutes from the start (4 minutes)
Action: Display. Participation: Everyone.
Recording not separately specified for this phase
- Write blind spots4–10 minutes from the start (6 minutes)
Action: Write. Participation: Individually.
Individual record
- Tour the gallery10–18 minutes from the start (8 minutes)
Action: Tour. Participation: Everyone.
Shared record
- Group the blind spots18–25 minutes from the start (7 minutes)
Action: Group. Participation: Groups responsible for each proposal.
Shared record
- Choose points to test25–30 minutes from the start (5 minutes)
Action: Choose. Participation: Everyone.
Shared record
Facilitation steps
- For 4 minutes, assign participants to proposals with group sizes differing by no more than 1, so every proposal has at least one person responsible.
- For 6 minutes, each person writes missing perspectives for proposals other than their own, one item per blind-spot card.
- For 8 minutes, make two silent tours of the gallery, anonymously posting only blind spots, not solutions, at each proposal.
- For 7 minutes, the group responsible for each proposal reads the cards without rebuttal, groups the same blind spots together, and adds headings.
- For 5 minutes, look together at the classified overlooked-point cards and select one point to check next for each proposal.
If something changes
If
After 4 minutes of the first tour, a proposal has fewer than 2 blind-spot cards.
Then
Put up the three headings ‘Assumptions’, ‘Users’, and ‘Failure conditions’ for that proposal and add one card under an empty heading.
If
Three minutes after grouping begins, each proposal still attracts 2 or more rebuttals.
Then
Stop the speaking, add only question marks in the cards' fact-check fields, and pass these to the points to test.
If
Three minutes after selection begins, each proposal still has 3 or more points to test.
Then
Keep only points observable within 24 hours and narrow them to one per proposal.
Preparation
Materials
- Display sheets for 2–8 proposals, one per proposal, A3 or larger
- Four blind-spot cards per person, approximately A6
- One dark-coloured writing implement per person
- One roll of attachment tape per proposal
Room and setup
- One gallery-style wall with 2–8 proposals already displayed at least 1.5 m apart, with no more proposals than participants
- One entrance and one exit enabling participants to walk in one direction
Adjust for people and time
With fewer than 6 people, limit proposals to no more than 2 and have people tour the gallery one at a time. With 6–50, display 2–8 proposals, no more than the participant count, and first assign at least one person to each with group sizes differing by no more than 1. Everyone writes overlooked points for proposals other than their own. Above 50, divide into groups of 8–10 and create a separate gallery for each. Each group passes just one set of overlooked-point cards classified by proposal to the whole group, where duplicate content is brought together.
Safety and non-applicable situations
Use anonymous cards to identify gaps to test, not to judge who is criticising. Keep the tour silent and responses free of rebuttal; assign who will observe blind spots and when before judging proposals. Do not use the method for emergencies or where anonymity would encourage avoidance of responsibility.
Historical translation and source notes
These original notes are retained verbatim with their fixed source versions. This historical label does not resolve a source-specific concern or establish current acceptance.
- The rebuttal branch refers to a fact-check field on the cards, but the materials do not specify that field. The reference is retained without adding a new card specification.
- The source requires assigning who observes blind spots and when in the guide, while the final step explicitly selects only one point per proposal. No new step or role assignment procedure is invented.
- For more than 50 participants, the source requires groups of 8–10 but does not give a remainder-allocation rule. No extra grouping rule is added.
Manuscript's recorded references
These translate the original manuscript's source and rights claims. They remain separate from any current-page notice below; they do not establish new verification.
- Taiwa no Fumen editorial team: Blind-spot Gallery
Original description and illustrations
Diagram, print, and video language
Original Japanese guide, diagram, and print view. Their labels and print text have not been translated; an English print edition is not provided here.
English video-library navigation. Original Japanese audio, subtitles and transcripts remain labelled Japanese resources. Their translations are separate later work. No remote player is embedded here.
The manual English phase controls are a navigation aid, not a live facilitation timer. Interactive diagram motion remains pending.
Editorial provenance
Japanese source status and logs are provenance only. They do not mean this English text or interface was field-tested. Historical fixed-text acceptance and hold records remain specific to their recorded versions; displaying them neither asserts current acceptance nor resolves source-specific restrictions.