From Intention to Experience
In 15–20 minutes, this tool will help you take one real moment in your organization, examine the space between what you intend and what people may actually experience, and identify something you might preserve, learn more about, or design differently.
We move through many moments in our organizations without giving them much thought. A new employee's first day. A promotion or performance conversation. A holiday party. Launching a new product or service. Asking a team to adopt new software or change the way they work. Some are moments we know are significant; others are ordinary parts of organizational life that we may not recognize as moments at all.
In schools, they're everywhere too. For families, there are back-to-school nights, parent conferences, field trips and performances, the introduction of a new instructional approach or service, welcoming a new family, or saying goodbye because of a move or graduation. For faculty and staff, it might be a professional learning initiative, a change in the school's financial circumstances, the launch of a strategic plan, new faculty orientation, a leadership transition, or a retirement.
What these moments have in common is that they aren't only about what is happening or what needs to get done. They're experiences people are having. And whether we've designed them intentionally or not, they can shape how people feel, what they understand, and the stories they come to tell about our organizations.
What we intend is not always the same as what people experience.
We may believe a moment makes people feel welcomed, appreciated, connected, supported, or informed—but how do we know? What story are we telling ourselves about someone else's experience, and is it true?
From Intention to Experience is a simple reflection tool to explore the power of one of those moments. It invites you to notice the moments that matter—or could—choose one to examine more closely, question what you think you know about how it's experienced, name what you actually want it to mean, and consider whether there's anything you want to preserve, learn, or design differently.
Get the Free Tool
From Intention to Experience is designed for use in a variety of contexts by individuals and teams alike. Bring one moment you're curious about and give yourself 15–20 minutes to work through the questions. If you're using it with others, consider reflecting individually first and then comparing what you notice.
Want to explore it together?
Sometimes the questions get more interesting when we have other people to think with.
I'm hosting a free virtual Working Session where we'll use From Intention to Experience together. Bring a moment from your organization that you'd like to examine more closely, and we'll work through the tool, share what we're noticing, and explore where greater intention might make a difference.
September 24, 2026 · 60 minutes · Virtual · Free
Bring this work to your organization
If this tool surfaces a moment, experience, or larger question you'd like to explore with your team, Together Through partners with organizations to listen, learn, and design experiences with greater intention.
