When scheduling a meeting, don’t get stuck on the details of your schedule.
Here’s how to find the right times and places for the most productive and enjoyable conversations.
1.
Identify the topic The most important part of the day is finding a topic that will excite your colleagues and motivate them.
Here are the steps to brainstorm a topic: 1.
Determine the topic: When choosing topics, think about what people are looking for and how to convey it.
“There are a lot of things you can talk about and people want to hear from you,” said Jessica Zahn, a senior executive at H&R Block.
“So the first thing is to come up with the best subject for the meeting and what people want us to talk about.”
2.
Write down the questions: Your goal is to have at least three questions in your mind.
Ask these questions as you start the brainstorming process.
“Are we discussing something that we need to discuss?” she said.
“What are we discussing?”
She said that if you want to build trust and build rapport, answer these questions with a neutral tone.
“If you are going to ask me, ‘What do you think is happening at the meeting?’ then you have to say, ‘I have no idea,'” she said, adding that if the topic is “the most important thing that I need to hear right now,” it will be a “great question.”
3.
Create a question that you will ask the other person during the meeting: The goal is for the two of you to both answer the question in the same way.
“You have to be able to get to the same point,” Zahn said.
She added that if your question is “Why do you feel this way?,” it’s not an appropriate question to ask.
“I want to get as much information out of them as I can before I ask the next question,” she said of her colleagues.
4.
Ask questions with the intent to connect: If you have an issue or a problem that needs to be addressed, it’s important to ask your colleague to share the problem or problem with you.
“It’s a lot more effective to get people to talk to you directly than to just sit in front of a computer and write a few notes and leave them,” Zanna said.
5.
Keep the conversation open and honest: The best way to create a great conversation is to keep the conversation at a casual level.
If you are having a difficult conversation, you can also talk about the issues that are affecting you in a more specific way, such as, “What do I need that I can’t find anywhere?” or “What’s my goal with this meeting?”
As Zahn mentioned, the best way for people to stay focused is to make it easy for each other.
“Don’t be a jerk,” she advised.
“Just keep the discussion open and talk about it with your team.
If something is not clear, just ask a question.”
6.
Take time to ask questions: It’s okay to talk with your co-workers about the problems you are experiencing, but if you are not asking for an immediate answer, then you can continue to discuss it.
Ask your colleague questions like, “Where are we at?
What are we doing right now?
Are we having fun?” and “How are we getting along?” she added.
“Once you are clear about the situation, ask about what you can do to make things better.”
7.
Use the space for learning: People tend to forget how to focus when they are not in a space where they are focused, and this is a good time to use the opportunity to learn, said Zahn.
“We all want to have a great meeting,” she added, adding, “The most important things that we can all learn from is having a good meeting and a great team.”
8.
Find a place to talk and listen: When it comes to meetings, you need to find a place where you can have a conversation.
“A good place to be is a place that you can sit back and listen and talk,” Zann said.
It’s important for your team to keep a place for each of them to work, “so that you all can have that space where we can discuss,” she explained.
“When you are in a meeting you are focusing on how to get things done, not what to talk.”
9.
Create an open, open-ended space: “The important thing is that it’s open to everyone,” Zans said.
When the time comes for your co’s to come together, it is important to create an open space that is conducive to each of you.
She suggested that if a person has been with you for a while, they should invite you over.
“Take the time to talk, listen, and connect,” Zan said.
You can also create a place, called a “backstage,” for each person to come to if you have a group of