Design the Meeting Everyone is Eager to Attend – Insights to Element 2: CARE

Effective meeting design is a multilayered approach. Leading a great meeting requires planning and intentionality – true. Just showing up with an agenda in hand is a step in the right direction, but ultimately may not insure full engagement and maximum team performance.

Smart meeting designers understand the importance of balancing task and relationship, which includes taking time to focus on what really matters to the human beings who will be attending. Design meetings that work for everyone by   showing what matters through CARE strategies.

Try something new!

From our Designing Effective Meetings: 10 Essential Elements^SM program you will learn and experience ten vital elements fundamental to designing effective meetings.

From Element 2: CARE

The focus of the second element creates a connection that inspires and moves your team into responsible action for greater success.

The essence of CARE is to get connected to what matters for full participation.

Ask yourself these critical questions:

1. What is important to you about this meeting/event?
2. What is the potential positive impact for those who may be attending?
3. How will we create a welcoming environment that invites everyone to engage?

Margaret Wheatley management consultant and thought leader in organizational development says, “People act responsibly when they care.” People on our teams are motivated when we take the time to nurture a sense of caring and create a caring place to meet. When members authentically care about the meeting or event they show up with an open mind,

Design the Meeting Everyone is Eager to Attend – Insights to Element 1: PREPARE

Effective meeting design is the artful expression of today’s creative leader. Thoughtful preparation is key to generating the results you want to create within your team, project, department, and organization.

Reports show that the average worker loses at much as 31 hours a month to unproductive meetings. That’s four work days each month.  Half of all meetings are unnecessary.

The multitasking environment of today often leaves little room for focusing on what’s important in organizing, designing, and leading effective meetings. Meeting leaders are often stymied in the land of overwhelm spinning on the hamster wheel of too many meetings, too little time, too little attention, and too few meaningful results. Futility and frustration permeate the collective response to meetings.

Ultimately inefficient meetings cost organizations billions of dollars each year in otherwise productive employee work time!

Sound familiar?

It doesn’t have to be this way.

You can make a difference. Try something new!

From our Designing Effective Meetings: Ten Essential Elements^SM program you will learn and experience ten vital elements fundamental to designing effective meetings.

From Element 1: PREPARE:

There’s an old saying that “folks don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan” which relates to the 5P’s for success:  Prior Planning Prevents Poor Performance. The focus of this first element set you and your team up for success.

The essence of PREPARE is to make ready beforehand for a specific purpose.

Ask yourself these critical questions:

1. What is at stake for the team/organization?
2. Is the meeting necessary?
3. Who should attend and what are their roles/responsibilities

In complex and stressful situations, intention meeting design creates an environment that engages participants for greater impact.

The Divided Brain: What was forgotten

In this new RSAnimate, renowned psychiatrist and writer Iain McGilchrist explains how our ‘divided brain’ has profoundly altered human behavior, culture and society.

This gives us an insight to what we have forgotten.

Shifting Mindsets: The Choice is Up to YOU!

What do you get with “YEH.. BUT”?

A FIXED mindset

…and sense you have some CONTROL (an illusion) in order to protect YOUR IMPORTANT PERSPECTIVE for the sake of LOOKING GOOD and PLAYING IT SAFE to maintain CONTROL (an illusion)….

Unless you’re on a mega roller coaster, HOLDING TIGHT is not usually all that productive.  The more you try to hold on, the more INFLEXIBLE you may become, which could lead to the perception that your perspective is actually RIGID and way too predictable if not limited and LIMITING.

Bottom line, “YEH…BUT” is a FEAR-based perspective which leads to “more of the same” (aka THE STATUS QUO).

THE ALTERNATIVE:  “YES…AND!”

An OPEN or GROWTH mindset

…a place of TRUST where DISCOVERY is a core value and we find ourselves asking each other to “Say more about that…” especially in situations where we may totally disagree.  Because of our “YES…AND!” mindset we are natural collaborators who believe there is strength our connection and that together we truly are better!

CREATIVITY abounds as we find it EASY to LET GO and to CHALLENGE each other for the sake of achieving our COLLECTIVE VISION.  Our FLEXIBILITY allows us to create an INCLUSIVE context for working, learning and growing together where everyone feels VALUED and able to CONTRIBUTE their gifts and talents.

NO FEAR is our motto because we have learned to TRUST ourselves and each other as we COLLABORATE  for the greater good.  Bottom line…we are all HAPPIER and way more productive!

The choice is up to you:  “YEH…BUT” or “YES…AND!” – What will it be?

by Jackie Levin