Game 3: Lightning Re-frame

Role A (The “Troll”): Throws complaints, blame, or negative frames.
Role B (The Leader): Re-frames and returns the ball.

Objective: Develop mental agility to detect a negative or manipulative frame and re-define it instantly in favor of the common goal.

Players and Roles

The Troll must stand chooses one of these phrases to launch their initial attack. Don’t think about it, just throw it.

Troll Phrase	Negative Frame Type
“You always want to be right about everything.”	Identity Attack (You are arrogant).
“This is a total waste of time.”	Process Attack (Uselessness).
“What you are is selfish.”	Labeling (Moral judgment).
“If you cared about the project, you would do this.”	Emotional Blackmail (Guilt).
“What nonsense you just said.”	Disqualification (Ridicule).
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”	Competence Attack (Authority).
“Here we go again with your quirks.”	Generalization (Negative history).
“And what would you know?”	Status Challenge (Hierarchy).
“That’s not going to work, as always.”	Self-fulfilling Prophecy (Pessimism).
“Do it however you want, I don’t care.”	Passive-Aggressive (False withdrawal).

The Troll throws a short phrase with poison (e.g., “You always arrive late”, “This is a waste of time”, “You are selfish”).
The Leader has 3 seconds to respond with a phrase starting with:
- “It is not X, it is Y…”
- “I understand you are worried about X; my goal is Y…”
- “Do we want X or do we want Y?”
If they take more than 3 seconds or justify themselves (“it’s not true…”), lose point. If they re-frame towards the goal, gain point.

What do you feel in your stomach when the accusation is thrown at you? (Normalize the stress spike).
Which “template” phrase worked best for you?

Don’t try to convince the Troll they are wrong. Simply change the conversation topic.

Troll: “You are annoying”.
Leader: “I am persistent because I want this to turn out well. Shall we continue?”