Three Easy Ways to Lead More Effective Meetings

How engaging are your meetings? Are your participants actively engaged in your meeting or are they texting and playing games on their mobiles? If you would like to lead more effective meetings, here are three easy steps to follow. 

1. Shift from being “I” or “me” focused to being “you” or “group focused”

This is a subtle, but very powerful shift. Eliminate as much “I” language as possible by focusing on your meeting participants and using the word “you.” The more you focus on engaging with your participants, the more effective your meetings will become.

2. Ask powerful questions

Do you open your meetings by saying, “What we will be covering today…” A better approach is to take your first agenda item and turn it into a powerful question: “What is one action step that you would recommend to improve the services we provide?” Simply put, questions rather than statements increase engagement.

3. Be willing to relinquish control

Here’s a simple exercise to try at your next meeting. Tell your participants that whenever anyone asks you a question, you’re going to respond by saying, “I don’t know. What’s your recommendation?” This is a great way to make your meetings more interactive and to have some fun along the way as well.

Need more tips on how to lead effective meetings? Visit www.LeadGreatMeetings.com for more ideas on how to improve your leadership skills.