Clearness Committee
A Clearness Committee is a process in which a small group gathers around one focus person who faces a personal question or decision and, for two hours, does one thing only: asks honest, open questions. Advice, fixing and commentary are ruled out so that the person can hear their own sense of direction, and everything said stays confidential. The practice comes from the Quakers and dates to the 1660s; Parker J. Palmer and the Center for Courage & Renewal adapted it for secular use.
Facilitation script
- 1
The clerk reviews the rules and the schedule, then the group settles into silence.
5 min - 2
The focus person breaks the silence and presents the issue, the background and their hunches.
15 min - 3
Open questions only, asked slowly with silence in between. The focus person answers or passes.
85 min - 4
The clerk asks whether the focus person wants mirroring. If so, members reflect back what they heard and saw; if not, questions continue.
10 min - 5
Affirmation in the last five minutes: members name the strengths they witnessed in the focus person. The clerk then restates the confidentiality rule, notes are handed to the focus person and the group closes in silence.
5 min
Tips
Teach and practise open questions before the session, because most people find them far harder than expected.
A useful test: if you are hoping for a particular answer, it is advice in disguise, so do not ask it.
Let silences run; they are part of the process and the focus person is usually working in them.
As clerk, interrupt gently but at once when someone starts to advise or to tell their own story, since one such moment can close the person down for the rest of the session.
Common pitfalls
Leading questions that carry a suggestion, which turn the session into polite persuasion and leave the focus person managing other people's opinions
Members filling silences because they feel awkward, which cuts off the moments in which the focus person is closest to their own answer
Using the mirroring phase to interpret or diagnose, bringing in the analysis the rules exist to keep out
A breach of confidentiality afterwards, even a kind remark in the corridor, which destroys the person's trust and that of everyone who hears about it
Expecting a decision by the end of the two hours; the process often brings clarity days later, and pressing for a result works against it
Variations
Parker Palmer's essay sets the length at two hours; some other descriptions of the practice allow three. In retreats and leadership programmes several committees run in parallel, with participants assigned to committees and focus persons volunteering in advance. Some groups use only the questioning discipline in a shorter form, for example triads asking open questions for 20 to 30 minutes; this is useful practice but should not be called a Clearness Committee. The Quaker original is embedded in a faith community and its own customs, which vary between meetings.
Where it fits
When to use it
Someone faces a personal or vocational decision where the answer has to come from them and outside advice has not helped
A retreat or long programme has built enough trust for a participant to be vulnerable in front of a small group
The focus person has asked for it themselves and has chosen or accepted the members
All members have been briefed on the rules and have practised asking open questions
Two undisturbed hours and a private room are available
When not to use it
As an exercise for a team that did not choose it or as a way to work on someone's performance; participation must be voluntary
The person wants ideas and recommendations: Troika Consulting or a Peer Coaching Circle is designed for that
Members include the focus person's manager or others with power over the outcome of the decision
The group cannot be trusted to keep strict confidentiality, in which case the process can do real harm
The person is in acute distress or crisis; this is not therapy, and professional support comes first
Related methods
Frequently asked questions
What is Clearness Committee?▾
A Clearness Committee is a discernment process from the Quaker tradition. A small group meets for two hours with one focus person who faces a personal question, and the members may only ask honest, open questions. The aim is to help the person hear their own answer, so advice and commentary are excluded and the session is strictly confidential.
What counts as an honest, open question?▾
It is a question to which the asker could not possibly anticipate the answer. It is short, does not lead towards a conclusion and serves the focus person's thinking instead of the asker's curiosity or opinion. "Have you considered talking to a therapist?" is advice; "What did you feel when you said that?" is an open question.
Who created the Clearness Committee?▾
It was developed by the Quakers, the Religious Society of Friends, more than three hundred years ago as a way for members to seek guidance in a community without clergy. The educator Parker J. Palmer described a version for use outside Quaker settings, and the Center for Courage & Renewal has taught it widely.
What does double confidentiality mean?▾
First, members never tell anyone else what was said in the session. Second, they do not bring the subject up with the focus person afterwards unless that person invites it. The second rule protects the focus person from follow-up advice and from feeling watched.
Can a Clearness Committee be used in a workplace?▾
Only with care. It works in leadership programmes and retreats where trust has been built, participation is voluntary and members have no power over the focus person's situation. It is not suitable as a routine team exercise, a feedback tool or a substitute for professional help in a crisis.
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Try it freeMethod descriptions on Workshop Weaver are original content written by our team, based on established facilitation practices. This method was inspired by work from Quaker practice; Parker J. Palmer / Center for Courage & Renewal.