Slumped shoulders, sour stomach, feeling a little down, or worse yet, a sense of dread–these are the awful emotions and physical reactions that you experience in light of a calendar notice. No, we’re not talking about how you feel when it’s time to visit the dentist, but rather those routine meetings you’re faced with on a regular basis. 

Interestingly, Forbes recently ran an article that focused on why employees hate meetings. It’s a sad reality, but many employees don’t see the value or the benefit of the meetings that they’re required to attend. The truth, though, is that with the right frame of mind and the appropriate structures, meetings can be powerfully productive. Last week, we introduced one of the first roles that you can play at your meetings, the moderator, which enables voice and perspective on the team. 

One primary reason behind establishing clear roles, explicitly or implicitly, is to create an environment that equalizes the participants at the table. Job titles, experience, and personality are just some of the factors that influence a meeting’s productivity. Last week in our post, we focused on the moderator as a role you can take to be a quality team player, and this week want to introduce the examiner to further demonstrate how you can take the lead in a new way to make your meetings the best that they can be. 

The examiner is the person who vets, tests, and even challenges the ideas and thoughts that are brought to the table. The primary role of the examiner is to probe, ask questions, and dissect the topic that is being discussed. This is not a role that everyone is comfortable assuming, especially if the idea or topic being discussed is brought forth from a superior. However, one frustration among many meeting participants is that meetings lack substance, don’t tackle the main issue, and fail to include quality discussions. The examiner pushes the thinking to go deep into the problems, and creates a good rumble. 

Although we are discussing roles at meetings, our focus this month is about how you can be a great teammate. Teammates challenge one another for the betterment of the organization. The key is in creating healthy conflict as a norm where participants feel comfortable. Next time you’re in a meeting, introduce this concept and be willing to be the first one to accept this role. 

1. Examiners ask questions. Their job is to put the idea or concept through a stress test. Too often, silence among team members is accepted as agreement. But, we know that it’s more likely that they simply want the meeting to end. The examiner creates discussion by probing the group to dive deeper.
2. Examiners pose a challenge. The role of examiner provides a platform to challenge ideas, systems, and processes in a safe space. Again, not everyone is comfortable taking on this task, but to practice being a great teammate means getting out of your comfort zone. One way to challenge without sounding like you’re poking holes in an idea is to gently say, “does the group mind if I ask a few questions to examine this further?” If you’re not named in the role of examiner, you can still take on that role in a way that isn’t threatening for the group. 
3. Examiners improve the discussion. The main reason that the examiner is so important for every meeting is that they improve the quality and depth of the discussion. People hate dry and drab meetings, but exciting dialogue is always productive. In challenge #1 above, the examiner asks questions in the group. For this challenge, take a minute at your next meeting and reflect (to yourself) about what would make the discussion more lively and what you might need as a participant. Chances are, other participants need the same thing. Plan to provide it in the moment or jot a note for the next meeting. 

Technical Tip: Asking great questions is not easy so we ask that you follow Rudyard Kipling’s Six Honest Serving Men poem as a framework to guide you. You can choose to ask what questions, by getting the group to define the what further. You can ask why questions about purpose and value. The key is to use Kipling’s what, why, when, how, where, and who as sentence starters to get the conversation flowing productively. 

I keep six honest serving men, they taught me all I knew.

Their names are What and Why and When

and How and Where and Who.

Reach out and share your story with us.

Stay tuned for more challenges, reflection questions, leadership models, podcasts, and more by following dereka206.sg-host.com. It’s our job to curate, synthesize, and communicate so that you can lead better and grow faster. In a world plagued by nothing but noise, we help you by getting to simple.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.

Our February focus is on being the best teammate that you can be. One key to being a great teammate is found in your ability to see other teammates’ perspectives, especially when it comes to your contribution, both positively and negatively. In our last post, we asked you to evaluate yourself through the context of one of your coworkers. The critical questions within the five-point model for teamwork are a great start to self-reflection.

This exercise is powerful but lasting change requires us to either break habits or form new ones. We need to take action to solidify what we believe into how we behave. Our three-minute challenges create opportunities for you to demonstrate your new understanding of leadership through practice. The more we practice the skills we desire, the more likely it is that they’ll become habits. 

Learning to “see” from someone else’s perspective is hard. In the fast-moving environment in which we work, just slowing down long enough to think in your own mind is difficult. That said, it’s a necessary practice if you want to be a more effective teammate. The good news is that the rewards gained far outweigh the cost of time. To develop this perspective, take The Three Minute Challenge below, and let us know how you do.   

Meetings can be the bain of our existence, but done well and firing on all five of the teamwork model’s points, they’re a place of extreme productivity. People come prepared, collaboration is easy, synergy occurs, and trust is abundant. When this happens, it’s usually because everyone is able to accept and develop multiple perspectives, even if they are unpopular or challenging. Notice, though, that on every great team, there’s always clear expectations and a “moderator”–someone who is willing to make sure that time and space gets used productively. Next time you’re at a meeting, and no one seems to be moderating, try taking these steps toward a better personal contribution to the team as their moderator: 

1. As a moderator, your job is to ensure that everyone participates. We all know that some people consume more airtime than others. And it doesn’t have to be your meeting to act as a moderator. The first step is not to try too hard to squelch the airtime consumers, but to provide space for the voices of the reluctant talkers. Take pause and ask others to say what they’re thinking. The insertion of their perspective will add value to the meeting, and your invitation to do so makes you a great teammate. 
2. Clarify misconceptions and complex concepts. At meetings, there are always people with more knowledge and stronger subject matter expertise. This may result in them processing the topic faster and using jargon. As the moderator, take pause to summarize what is being said and ask if anyone needs further clarification. Don’t be shy about using a friendly interruption or two. It will make for a better meeting when everyone is on the same page.  
3. Don’t forget to contribute more than just being the moderator. Often, when leaders take on the role of moderating, they can get caught up in “running” the meeting. That’s not what we’re suggesting. Rather, just using Steps 1 and 2 above allow you to add value to your team in addition to providing your own perspective. You’re creating space not only for multiple points-of-view from the team but also your own. 

Technical Tip: Note that moderating is important, but self-moderating is more important than anything. Don’t moderate others until you are good at moderating yourself, especially your airtime. One tip that we like to use is to balance talking and listening by using a physical item. Next time you’re in a meeting, pick up your pen whenever you’re not speaking (use it for writing or just have it in-hand), and set it down when you speak. This will provide a gauge for your airtime so that you can be the best teammate possible. 

Reach out and share your story with us.

Stay tuned for more challenges, reflection questions, leadership models, podcasts, and more by following dereka206.sg-host.com. It’s our job to curate, synthesize, and communicate so that you can lead better and grow faster. In a world plagued by nothing but noise, we help you by getting to simple.

TheSchoolHouse302 is about getting to simple by maximizing effective research-based strategies that empower individuals to lead better and grow faster.

Joe & T.J.