3 Mistakes I've made Facilitating Meetings And Better Ways to Engage Team Members

I’ve always enjoyed facilitating. I’m energized when a group of people come together to consider a new way forward or solve a complicated dilemma. Much of that work happens through boards or committees. These teams of people, with various personalities and dispositions, gather to navigate a better way. In both participating on and leading numerous boards and committees over the last 30 years, I made the mistake of thinking that other leaders in the room would process information and interact with each other the way I process information and interact with others. There are three mistakes I made when facilitating meetings:

1. I assumed everyone was a verbal processor.

2. I assumed everyone was as extroverted as I am.?

3. I assumed everyone was energized by strategic planning.

Recognizing My Mistakes

1. I assumed everyone was a verbal processor.

I think best out loud. I process and discern ideas while I’m talking. At times, my mind is racing from concept to concept while I’m dialoging about various possibilities. I quickly move to full throttle when 3-4 other verbal processors engage with me in a back-and-forth idea generating discourse. Those meetings energize me.

When I first joined boards and committees, I assumed everyone who participated in these groups liked to think out loud…that their best decisions were made while dialoging.? I soon discovered that several people at the meeting were internal processors. Some of my colleagues did their best thinking contemplatively with time for reflection.?

At one point the most useful solution I had was to go around the room allowing everyone to share what they were thinking (while offering the opportunity to ‘pass’). I watched as some of the colleagues I wanted to hear from ‘passed’ simply because they didn’t have enough time to process. I needed an alternate approach.?

2. I assumed everyone was as extroverted as I am.

I enjoy talking to complete strangers. In a few minutes I can learn where they are from, what they do and some intriguing facts about them. I’m also energized by back-to-back meetings in a day with different organizations and groups of people.?

As several of my colleagues were volunteering their time with the organization because of their passion for the cause, I assumed they would either initiate conversation or contribute significantly to the dialogue.

I’ve learned that many people find speaking in front of strangers paralyzing and similarly have a hard time sharing ideas even when they are familiar with the majority of the others in the room. For a variety of reasons, they aren’t always comfortable taking the risk to share their ideas in front of others. Their introverted personality is refreshed and recharged when they have time on their own and are drained by dialogue.?

At one point my solution was to assign break or lunch buddies for everyone in the room with a series of questions they should ask each other (this was of course counter intuitive to the needs of introverts who wanted a break from everyone at lunch to recharge and not further engagement). A better solution? was required.?

3. I assumed everyone was energized by strategic planning where you spend hours negotiating and designing the future of an organization.?

One of my Geniuses (as identified by ) is invention. I find solving dilemmas and challenges invigorating.? I’ve realized that some people at board and committee meetings are frustrated during brainstorming sessions as they are passionate about helping others with an identified task or long to complete the task.?

As most boards work through a strategic planning process every 3-5 years, I presumed everyone looked forward to that part of the board cycle. Doesn’t everyone join boards to imagine and invent a preferred future??

I soon learned that, for some of my colleagues, their least favourite part of the board cycle was strategic planning and yet they were all asked to participate in the process. They found the imaginative brainstorming process exhausting and believed they had little to offer.?

A better approach was required.?

A Corrective Course of Action

Over the years, I’ve discovered various strategies that have encouraged both the verbal and internal processors as well as the extroverted and introverted board members to participate. Extracting the collective wisdom from the group for the best result is crucial. Here are some tactics I’ve found beneficial:

1. Send an agenda out ahead of time with beneficial information allowing everyone to prepare. This sounds simple but is challenging for many boards and committees. Sending an agenda out with any necessary documentation and some pre-reading allows people to engage with the material thoughtfully ahead of time.?

If you have an agenda item that requires a generative conversation or decision, make that clear in the pre-read so they can reflect on the topic of conversation. This will allow them to come to a meeting and participate in the conversation robustly. You could consider writing out 3-4 questions that board members should reflect on for items that necessitate discussion.?

2. Build time into your meeting for contemplative reflection. Board and committee meetings have full agendas. Building in time for contemplative reflection is deliberate. When you are crafting the agenda, you should consider which items require vigorous conversation and how to best facilitate them.

One of the tactics I’ve discovered is carving out the time to have people write their thoughts on a sheet of paper. Giving 5-7 minutes for people to pause, take a deep breath and reflect on the next topic allows internal processors a moment to think. This technique also allows your introverts a few moments to recharge.?

Give people permission to stand up, look out a window and stretch. Let them know that this isn’t a break to check your phone or zone out but rather to write out 5-10 ideas answering the question at hand.? Remind everyone to do this silently and contemplatively.

The next step is to take a few minutes and have everyone share their ideas with the person they are sitting beside. Verbalizing your ideas assists you in articulating the concept clearly. It allows you to clarify your ideas before you bring them to the whole group. This often gives those more hesitant to share the courage to do so.

3. You should acknowledge that while you need everyone present for the creation of the strategic plan, certain geniuses and strengths will be utilized during various parts of the process. Verbally acknowledging that everyone in the room is naturally inclined to different stages of this task will release those who are frustrated by wonder, invention or discernment from the guilt they often experience while developing a strategic plan (read this article for a brief introduction on Working Genius ).?

People experience guilt when they don’t think as quickly as others or find brainstorming exercises developed to help the team invent a new way forward exasperating. They need to be invited to participate and reminded that there are parts of the strategic plan where their Geniuses will be vital for the organization.?

This allows team members to engage in every aspect of the strategic plan, having a better understanding of where they may more naturally contribute to the process.

Considering how your team members processes information, the natural disposition of their personality and where they best contribute to the task at hand (ie. a strategic plan) will ratify the was you facilitate meetings. You will be able to draw out the creativity and ideas of every team member to create the best way forward for your organization and solve complex problems.?

Be mindful that most of your team won’t be wired the way you are which allows you the privilege to facilitate in a way that invites participation.?

If you would like some coaching in ways you can improve ways you facilitate meetings you can DM me on?LinkedIn ?or schedule a Discovery Call @ Cline Consulting . I’d be delighted to pass on what I’ve learned.