Nurture a comfortable atmosphere.
The atmosphere refers to the emotional climate that exists in the meetings. Are members comfortable and willing to share, or are they guarded and hesitant? Is the focus on the issue at hand, or is the meeting a fortress of personal agendas?
Creating and maintaining a productive atmosphere is your responsibility.
Used for
Creating a productive environment so that your group members feel comfortable and valuable. If they feel comfortable and valued, they will be more likely to share honestly, and the group meeting will be more successful.
How to
1. Engage with each person as they enter the room.
Remember your group is an assemblage of individuals. So, your group atmosphere starts with connecting with each individual.
As they enter the room, be it a live physical space or a video room, make eye contact with each, and greet every person by name. This is not just true for the first meeting, but for every meeting that follows.
Engage with every individual by compliment each one. So, something like, “Hi John. That a festive looking shirt, are you celebrating something?” Or “Good morning, Mary. I’m glad to see you. We missed you at the last meeting.”
If you can find something humorous and relate it to the individual, now is the time.
If you are entering a group which is already in place, then take the first few moments to have everyone introduce themselves. Give them specific directions, like “Tell us your name, your position, how long you have been with the company and one personal thing – say, where you were in the birth order of your family.”
As in every new thing, you go first in order to model the kind of response you expect.
As each person responds, connect with each one. (See the section on “responding” below). Find something to compliment, something you have in common, or something humorous to comment on. If nothing else, thank him/her for their comment.
| You are recognizing each individual as a valuable and unique part of the group. You are affirming their place in the group and letting them know that you value them. In so doing, you make it easier for them to participate.
|
It sounds so simple, and it is. You are recognizing each individual as a valuable and unique part of the group. You are affirming their place in the group and letting them know that you value them. In so doing, you make it easier for them to participate.
2. Share the rules.
Share the objectives, agenda, and the rules. It’s better if you have these written out, on a document or a poster in a physical space, or a file or a screen in a video space. Take the time to read them aloud to the group.
3. Begin with a question.
Remember, the best prompt for good thinking is a good question. A good question engages the group and taps into the intellectual potential of each group member. You may want to begin with the reason for the group meeting translated into an overriding question. Then go to smaller component questions following that.
For example, you could say, “This meeting is to discuss a new product line. So, we are here to answer the question, “What are the best two or three applications for our new product line?”
Each item on the agenda should be presented as a question. For example, you could have an agenda item that says:
“Identify the most common applications for the new product line.” Your question to open that part of the agenda is “What are the three most effective applications for the new product line?”
Every direction and question should be very specific. (quantifiable if possible) and have a time limit. So, “Please take ten minutes and record at least three applications that you can see yourself promoting.” Instead of “Look for potential applications.”
4. Go first in every new thing.
Model everything you ask them to do. So, for example, if it is time to
- Introduce yourself.
- Think of one good application.
- Think of one powerful benefit.
- Prepare a written commitment.
Or any other task that you have not yet done in this session, provide them with a model of what the task looks like by doing it first yourself.
5. Respond positively to every comment.
This is a powerful, and often overlooked, practice. Respond to everything said. That means that you provide positive feedback for every comment. Every single thing. You don’t have to agree with the comment to reward the commenter. When you respond, you affirm the person, and you show that you are listening and valuing their input. It encourages other people to chip in.
So, many people think that the sequence is “question, answer, ask another question.” It’s not. Instead, follow this sequence: “Ask a question, listen to the answer, respond to that answer, then ask another question.”
A response can be almost any verbalization that acknowledges the person and what he/she has just said.
So, you could,
* Say their name and interact with what they said. For example, “That’s a thoughtful insight, Mary.”
* Or, you could thank them. “Thanks, John.”
* Or, you praise the comment.” That’s a great thought, Bill. It took some courage to share that.”
The atmosphere has a lot to do with why some meetings are positive, focused and productive, and others are listless and mediocre. By meticulously attending to these practices, you’ll build and maintain an atmosphere that generates better results.
