Before your next meeting ask yourself these 5 questions:
Be a productive influence and use these questions to focus your mindset and enage your motivation, contribution, open mindedness, collaboration, and support skills.
1. What is my purpose for attending this team meeting?
Clarifying your purpose helps you set clear intentions and goals for the meeting as well as providing you with greater motivation and energy. Ask yourself why your presence is important and what you hope to achieve or contribute during the session.
2. Am I prepared?
Review the agenda, any pre-meeting materials, or relevant information beforehand. Ensure that you have the necessary knowledge, data, or documents to actively participate and provide valuable insights or contributions during the meeting. You might also ask if the right people are invited to provide important perspectives and help achieve buy in with any decision making.
3. How can I actively engage and contribute?
Consider how you can actively participate in the meeting. Think about sharing your ideas, asking thoughtful questions, or offering suggestions to drive meaningful discussions and contribute to the team’s objectives. Visualize yourself being proactive and engaged during the session. How does your physiology need to be – posture, facial expression, tone, energy? What language will be best to use? Where does the focus need to be?
Also consider how you can draw in other’s who are not engaging and ensure that everyone has space to speak.
4. What potential challenges or conflicts may arise, and how can I handle them effectively?
Anticipate any potential challenges or conflicts that may arise during the meeting. Consider different perspectives or opposing viewpoints and think about how you can address them constructively and respectfully. Stay curious to ensure full understanding and prepare yourself mentally to maintain a positive and solution-oriented mindset.
5. How can I demonstrate active listening and support for my team members?
Team meetings often involve collaboration and information sharing. Reflect on how you can actively listen to others, show empathy, and support your team members’ contributions. Consider techniques such as paraphrasing, summarizing, or asking follow-up questions to demonstrate your engagement and understanding.
Showing up at your best in team meetings involves active participation, preparation, open-mindedness, and a collaborative mindset. These questions can help you set the right mindset and approach to be a productive influence and make a meeting successful.
Success tip – share these questions with your team and ask if it would be a reasonable team agreement that everyone considers these questions prior to each meeting. Imagine how effective and efficent your meetings can be if everyone works to be a productive influence.