Teams often get into a meeting rut.
By following the same agenda and structure, they operate efficiently but sometimes bypass or overlook critical issues and discussions. Not addressing the most pressing issue that faces the team is far too commonplace.
This is a direct result of depending on the same people and the same agenda to drive the meeting and conversation.
Good leaders acknowledge that at any given point in time, there are one or more critically important issues to discuss or questions to answer. The best use of meeting time is to direct energy toward such significant topics.
But that means blowing up the highly effective and efficient meeting structure already in place. That’s exceedingly hard for leaders to do unless they turn to a different way of generating the agenda for one meeting.
The best leaders break the norm and, on occasion, ask team members and even those outside the team to suggest the most important issue or topic to discuss.
By crowdsourcing the agenda, so to speak, leaders get the chance to learn what others think is the “elephant in the room.” Translated, this means identifying the issue everyone wants or believes we should talk about but that is bypassed for reasons of comfort, ignorance, or both.
Anonymously asking “the crowd” or those inside and outside of the meeting team to propose topics or issues for discussion can prove highly revealing. Simply knowing what others consider the most important issue or question to explore can be enlightening for leaders.
Reserving a block of meeting time to address the issue can often shake the team out of its meeting stupor and get to the heart of something important.
Occasionally designing an entire meeting agenda from the suggestions offered through a crowdsourcing process can be just the change of pace a team needs to reinvigorate its engagement and discussions.
Breaking out of a set pattern or rut is never easy, especially when it is comfortable and most effective. But good leaders like to stir things up if for no other reason than to remind the team that the most important conversation is usually the one they don’t want to have.
A Daily Dispatch from the Front Lines of Leadership.
