Looking for a way to bring order to your next team meeting? Work with the group to establish mutually agreed upon behavioral norms.

Here are several examples to prime the pump:

  • Participate fully; be present and engaged.
  • Communicate honestly and candidly; put it all on the table.
  • Speak one at a time; no sidebar conversations.
  • Say what’s true for you by making “I” statements…I think, I feel…
  • Keep the discussion focused on the topic; no side trips or tangents.
  • Avoid interrupting; allow the speaker to complete her/his point
  • Practice listening to understand others.
  • Turn off technology.
  • Bring our best ideas to the table.
  • If the discussion involves sensitive information, you may choose to include an agreement that says, “At the conclusion of the meeting, we’ll agree on what can be shared, with whom, how and when.”

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