I like to start important, longer, strategy meetings with these four rules. They work great. Here’s what you say to the team:
We all tell the truth (in love)
As we see it. We might be wrong, but we’re going to say what we really believe to be true, because that’s how we make the best decisions. We’re not robots, and the worst thing we can do is pretend to agree.
Suffering in silence is not a option in our meetings! There are no taboos about what can and can’t be talked about.
And if we hurt feelings, we say sorry.
Egos get left at the door
We’re going to be discussing issues that affect us personally. Sometimes we’ll talk about a decision that YOU made that didn’t go well.
But we leave our egos at the door. That means that we don’t get defensive. We talk about what’s best for the business.
It’s not WHO is right. It’s WHAT is right.
No blame, no shame – we solve issues and move on
When we get to the bottom of things, we don’t try to affix blame and punish the guilty. We just talk about the issue, fix it, and move on the next issue. No point punishing the guilty (or the innocent as often happens!). So, anything and everything can be fixed.
We all leave on the same team
When the day is done and we’ve all had our say and engaged in lots of unfiltered discussion, we leave united. We have the same message to everyone outside the room.
When we disagree, we do so in private. When we’re in public, we always have each other’s back.
Try this recipe and you’ll see it works, and it sets the stage for a great day (or more) of meetings.
You can also check out my new course on Meetings. You’ll learn which meetings you should be having, and how to run them, complete with agendas and directions. Check out a free preview here:
https://learning.professionalleadershipinstitute.com/courses/meetings-and-communication
