Meeting Rules

One of the great challenges that leaders will often face is the ability to facilitate an environment that will yield the maximum capacity from a team. Whether it is an athletic team, student body government, or a student leadership team at a church. Whatever the function and purpose of the team there will always be the need to gather for the purpose of planning and preparation. Now if youre anything like me you enjoy meetings about as much as a trip to the dentist or doing math. Yet I still recognize their importance. In understanding the importance of the meeting I would like to share ten rules the SLU staff adheres to so that we might achieve the highest level of productivity. The first three have been adapted from the legendary college basketball coach John Wooden.

1. Always be on time, start on time, and try to end on time
2. Never criticize one of your teammates
3. Always present yourself as a professional
4. Silence is affirmation
5. All of us are smarter than any one of us
6. Be loyal to the leaderprivate respect is demonstrated in public loyalty
7. Have a designated and stated purpose and operate in a timely manner
8. Have structure for the meeting realizing that it is a guideline more than a rule
9. Have measurable results and always be able to answer, Were the objectives of the meeting accomplished?
10. Make sure everyone understands their tasks when leaving the meeting

In closing it must be said that everyone goes to meetings whether they want to or not. At times we will be the one leading and other times we will simply be one of many who participate. Sometimes the meeting will be with one person and other times with many. Regardless of the type or attendance of the meeting the above rules can be applied.

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Written by Brent Crowe (Follow on twitter)