What is KPT?
KPT is a simple retrospective method built around three questions: K (Keep), P (Problem), and T (Try).
| Item | Question |
|---|---|
| Keep | What went well and should be continued? |
| Problem | What didn’t work or caused difficulty? |
| Try | What do you want to try next? |
The idea is straightforward: identify what worked, what didn’t, and decide on your next action. It originated in agile development retrospectives, but works equally well for personal work reviews and habit check-ins.
Template
Create a new text file and paste the following. You can also copy last week’s file to get started quickly.
## Keep (what to continue)
## Problem (what didn't work)
## Try (what to try next)
Leaving extra blank lines makes it easier to write freely. Name files by date and save them weekly or monthly — you can then look back on any past review at any time.
Example folder structure
Retrospectives/
Weekly/
2025-W20.txt
2025-W21.txt
Monthly/
2025-04.txt
2025-05.txt
Tips for sticking with it
- Ten minutes on the weekend is enough — don’t try to write something perfect; jot down whatever comes to mind.
- Keep Try to 1–3 items — too many and you won’t be able to check them the following week.
- Read last week’s Try before you start — confirming what you did or didn’t follow through on raises the quality of the review.
- Browse the tree — just looking at the growing stack of files gives you a real sense of continuity.
KPT is said to have originated from agile development retrospective sessions.