Given that so much of the working week is spent in meetings, it is all too easy for them to become habitual. In a fast-moving business environment with deadlines to meet and clients to satisfy, there is rarely the luxury of time to permit anything other than the necessary business of the meeting itself.
But not all meetings are like this and, occasionally, longer meetings, such as staff training weekends and annual sales kick-off events, allow more time for activities not directly associated with business objectives.
So, given more time and less need to absolutely focus on the business specifics, think about introducing some new characteristics into these meetings that will stimulate, energise and motivate participants in to producing better outcomes.
In this chapter there are some simple, effective, yet inexpensive, ways in which you can introduce an element of uniqueness into the meetings that you lead. Whilst they are not suitable for every environment, if just one of them is suitable for inclusion in your meeting, it will remain in the participants’ memories.
Just be aware that in any situation when the unexpected happens, people can find themselves outside of their comfort zones. Whilst none of our suggestions is designed to have this effect, you need to think carefully about introducing such innovation into your meetings and, if appropriate, give participants advance notification.
Aroma
People recall smells with a 65 per cent accuracy after a year, while the visual recall of photos sinks to about 50 per cent after only three months.
Our odour memories frequently have strong emotional qualities and are associated with the good or bad experiences in which they occurred. Olfaction is handled by the same part of the brain (the limbic system) that handles memories and emotions. Therefore, we often find that we can immediately recognise and respond to smells from childhood such as the smell of clean sheets, cookies baking in the oven, the smell of new books or a musty room in Grandma’s house. Very often we cannot put a name to these odours yet they have a strong emotive association even if they cannot be specifically identified.
This material was reproduced from senseofsmell.org with permission of SOSI.
Copyright ©2001 SOSI. All Rights Reserved.
Imagine being able to boost the productivity of your meeting through the introduction of a subtle aroma into the meeting environment. Research has shown that the smell of jasmine or eucalyptus boosts productivity and helps to prevent drowsiness. More specifically, when the scent of jasmine was introduced into a work environment, keyboard errors were reduced by almost 30 per cent and this reduction in mistakes was increased to 50 per cent when the smell of lemon was introduced.
Music
Most of us have a musical soundtrack to our lives; specific songs and tunes that evoke strong memories of people, places and times in our lives. Music can make us happy, thoughtful or sad. How would your participants feel if they entered the meeting room to a piece of music? Instead of fumbling around for small talk as everyone arrives, what would be the effect of a timeless pop song or rousing classical piece? Would such music help to lift moods and attitudes?
Music has the following benefits:
- It helps us to retain messages – researchers have found that it stimulates the brain responsible for language and memory. Think about how you learnt your ABCs as a small child – can you still remember the tune and, more importantly, the alphabet?
- It helps us to make connections – because music utilises both sides of our brains it allows us to connect multiple neural pathways between the left and right sides of the brain, so making connections to memories.
- It can affect your mood by triggering the neurotransmitter ‘serotonin’ which influences attention, learning and mood. It can also affect the hormone ‘epinephrine’ which is part of our ‘fight or flight’ response.
- It can motivate – music can be inspiring and uplifting, for example national anthems should be inspirational and create a sense of belonging for their citizens. Military forces also harness the power of music, setting marching drills to songs, which also builds camaraderie.
For a group that meets regularly together, you could ask each participant in turn to choose a track that will be played at the beginning of each meeting. Maybe that person could take a couple of minutes to explain why they chose it? It may seem frivolous to use up five minutes of valuable time with a piece of music, but it allows participants to settle quickly in to listening mode. Taking this one step further, you might consider asking everyone to ‘check in to the meeting’ for the same reason.
Personal check-ins
Before getting down to the business of the meeting itself, give each participant a couple of minutes to talk about where they are at personally. Did they have any stress getting to the meeting; last-minute changes to childcare arrangements, transport that was late, traffic problems, etc. Do they want to share anything about their personal life with the group, how their children are doing at school or sport, what holiday they have booked for this year, etc.
Is there a business advantage to be had from such a seemingly personal invasion? When this process is used for the first couple of times, there may be those who feel uncomfortable with it but, with careful management and objectives, it can produce tremendous value.
- Each person has the opportunity to speak about something completely within their control. Having already spoken at the meeting, when it comes to the business input, they are more likely to contribute further.
- Everyone is listening. If we are dealing with everyday business processes then it is all too easy to switch off from intense listening. But we will listen intently to the personal contributions, and this puts participants into listening mode too.
- Participants can identify any common ground they share outside of the business environment. These similar personal experiences can draw them together, thereby strengthening the group through these understandings and consequently producing better group outcomes.
If your organisation currently does not start meetings with a ‘check-in’, then it will need careful introduction in order to become a valuable business ethos. It must be seen to be supported by senior management, and participants should be alerted prior to its introduction; what the expectations are, how it will be managed, and the personal and business benefits for it.
Ice breakers
Ice breakers can be an incredibly powerful tool to create environments conducive to group working by breaking down any barriers that inhibit collaboration. As such, these exercises should be properly scheduled and managed to ensure they do not eat in to the precious time allocated to other agenda items. Establishing some commonalities with fellow participants will help to create a warm, friendly, personal environment, where the participants will feel able to learn, share and create.
Traditionally we expect ‘ice breakers’ to be used at the outset of a meeting. However, consider using them as ‘thinking interrupters’ to inspire a group or to get people moving around the room, and re-energised. They can be used as ‘lead-ins’ for particular topics, or inspiring group sessions used to re-align the group after a break. They can be fun, amusing, humorous, thoughtful, surprising or just plain silly. Here are 10 examples to get you started, and you could always create your own.
‘Satisfaction does not come with achievement, but with effort. Full effort is full victory.’
Mahatma Gandhi
- Digressing Duncan and Jovial Jane
Ask each participant to choose an adjective that begins with the first letter of their first name and one that really matches their personality. Have them introduce themselves just as they wrote it on the card and allow time for others to ask questions. Allocate just 30 seconds per participant. - Birthday partner
Have participants mingle in the group and identify the person whose birthday (not year – just month and date) is closest to their own. Find out two things they have in common, then share this with the group. - Roam and stick
Line the walls of the room with different problems for group members to solve, beginning with phrases such as, ‘How can we . . .’ ‘What would the . . .’ (e.g., ‘How can we reduce the response time for call outs?’) Give each group member a pack of Post-it™ notes and invite them to walk around the room, write ideas on their notes, and stick them on the problem to which they apply. They should also be encouraged to discuss with other participants whilst walking around the room. - An opportunity to learn
Designate a portion of each meeting for ‘meeting skills training’. Introduce a new skill at each meeting, such as note taking, presentations, communication, etc. - Here we go again!
Ask the group to identify the most common types of disruptive behaviours in meetings (interrupters, off on a tangent, manipulators, side conversations, ‘that will never work’, etc.) Anytime someone exhibits one of the disruptive behaviours, any group member (or the whole group) can shout out ‘Here We Go Again!’ to gently remind the ‘offender’. - Fill in the blanks
Ask participants to share one or two ‘burning questions’ they hope will be answered in this session. Write these on to a flip chart or whiteboard, making them visible throughout the meeting as a constant reminder of individual objectives. - Sunshine
Everyone writes their name in the centre of a piece of paper and draws a sun around it. The paper is then passed to the right, where the next person will write something positive on it. This continues until the paper is back to the person whose name appears in the sun with lots of positive messages all around. - Line up
As people enter the meeting, hand each one a piece of paper with a different number written on it. Ask the group to arrange themselves in numeric order without using their voices, hands or showing their number. This helps the group to think of other ways to communicate with each other and to work together to achieve a common goal. - Name badges
Prepare name badges for each person and put them in a box. As people walk into the room, each person picks a name badge – not their own. When everyone is present, participants are told to find the person whose name badge they drew, introduce themselves and say a few interesting things about themselves. When everyone has their own name badge, each person in the group will introduce the person whose name badge they were initially given, and mention something of interest about that person. This helps participants get to know and remember each other.
Exercise and nutrition
Stand-up meetings
For meetings scheduled to last less than 30 minutes, consider the value of hosting a stand-up meeting. When we sit we have the opportunity to lean back in our chairs, fold our arms, and switch off; in fact how many times have you seen colleagues momentarily doze off during meetings? These situations could not have occurred in a stand-up meeting. Naturally the furniture to support such meetings must be correct, and the group must not be too large; we would recommend no more than the leader plus six others.
Many office environments have areas furnished with high tables and stools – just remove the stools for however long you need. Typically you would not use such an environment for a long meeting, but you could start the meeting without the stools and re-introduce them after half an hour if necessary.
By standing up, everybody is more energised and will concentrate for longer. Some people have electric height-adjustable desks. These are used to break up the day allowing change from standing to sitting, and for those with back problems, standing for some of the time is a real bonus. For very small meetings of two or three people, you can use such desks to host them as stand-ups.
As a footnote, you need to be conscious of any participants who may not be able to stand for such a length of time. For shorter meetings of less than ten minutes, stand-up meetings can be used without any furniture at all. In fact, given a nice sunny day, they can be held outside to great effect.
Anyone for a massage?
Hire a professional masseuse to give a five-minute neck massage or foot rub to participants during the meeting. This could improve concentration, motivation and even reduce stress levels during a meeting. In addition to virtually guaranteeing attendance, this can be used to start and end the meeting on time. Anyone arriving late forfeits their massage.
In 2007 an article in World Business reported the following:
‘Foot massages are a part of office protocol in Procter & Gamble’s Manila office. The new P & G Philippines President, Mr. James “Jim” M. Lafferty, has implemented a new policy which might just revolutionize the concept of worker benefits. Every Tuesday and Thursday, employees and guests who care to, may now have free foot massages during meetings at the P & G offices in Ayala Avenue’s 6750 Building.
‘Although some (people) were initially reluctant to remove their shoes in front of their colleagues in the middle of a presentation, nobody misses meetings now, according to Mr. Rafferty.’
Nutrition
Biscuits and cakes are great for meetings as they tend to appear magically at tea and coffee breaks. A chocolate-covered sugary biscuit will result in a short sharp rise in blood sugar level, but the effect will not be prolonged. The reality is that we have become programmed to having biscuits and cakes, and the prospect of fresh fruit and cereal bars can seem like a punishment. But these healthier snacks will produce a longer injection of energy, and most of us know that plain water is better for the body and the brain than caffeine-based drinks.
Flip chart fun!
- Prepare a flip chart with a list of your presentation headings. Locate this at the back of the room, as a prompt for delivering your content without the need for hand-held notes.
- If you are looking for ‘compare and contrast’ information from your audience, use two flip charts next to each other to collate the pros and cons.
- Touch, turn and talk. When using your flip charts, write down the information, turn to your audience, and only then talk about the point.
The attention grabber
Display complete faith in your product or service
Many years ago, whilst sitting (and trying to stay awake) through yet another product demonstration, the manufacturer’s representative suddenly climbed on to a table and dropped his new (and very expensive) product – a Canon Ixus Digital Camera – from a great height. I suspect he noticed the waning interest of his audience, and immediately took this extreme action to win back our interest and confidence in the product. Well guess what – it worked. More than seven years later, I remember the product, the manufacturer and the name of the representative, and have recently purchased my second Ixus camera!
Breakout groups
A breakout group is a term used to describe the division of the main gathering of people into smaller sub-groups. Each sub-group is given a specific task, with a set of objectives associated, that needs to be considered, within a given time period. This task can be the same for all breakout groups, or they can all be assigned different tasks and objectives. After the time period has elapsed each sub-group will be given the opportunity to present their findings to the main group.
A breakout group may range in size from 2 to no more than 10 people. The only real constraints associated with the number of breakout groups are the availability of the correct facilities, and the ability to facilitate the discussions once all the groups return.
Breakout groups have several advantages:
- They allow participants to actually reach their own conclusions, in an interactive and inclusive environment where everyone has the opportunity to contribute to the discussion. This is especially valuable with some participants who may be reluctant to express themselves in a large group.
- They get people moving around the room and talking to different participants; maybe even sharing new opinions and ideas.
- Work can be accomplished much more quickly with a small group than trying to do it with a large group, especially if there is a lot of content to be covered. Each breakout group can cover a separate question or issue; once findings are shared, the collective group can agree actions and timescales for implementation.
- Breakout groups can be used to change the group dynamics during the meeting, effectively mixing things up to keep everyone fresh and boost concentration levels.
Take away
Whilst time is generally limited in meetings, a positive and uplifting way to close the meeting is to ask each participant in turn to verbalise their most important take away from the meeting. What is the one thing that struck them most about what they learnt, what was shared or what was created from the meeting?
Summary for leading a Brilliant Meeting
First impressions |
Arrive early and prepare presentations/technology. Start the meeting on time. Deal with late-comers and unexpected events. |
Working with a new group |
Outline housekeeping issues and explain ground rules. Are decisions being made? If so, how will they be reached? Have participants been assigned any meeting functions, i.e. timekeeper? |
Managing the agenda |
Keep the meeting on track and on time. Manage and encourage contributions. Ensure effective use of questions. Deal with unhelpful individuals, conflict and interruptions. |
Concluding the meeting |
Summarise discussions and actions assigned. Confirm when notes will be circulated and if the meeting is to be evaluated. Schedule next meeting. Thank everyone. |
Leading a virtual meeting |
Test technology in advance. What is the time of day in the other locations? Manage participation between locations. Be aware of any cultural or language differences. |
After the meeting |
Evaluate meeting feedback. Ensure that participants complete their actions. Ensure wider communication of meeting outcomes. |
Do something different |
Use aroma and music in meetings. Discover personalities through ‘personal check-ins’, ‘ice breakers’ and ‘break-out’ groups. Take advantage of introducing exercise and nutrition. Grab their attention! Ask for people’s take aways. |
