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The "Before, During, and After" of Leading an Effective Meeting
Part 2: Before
from Pat Morley
Volume 176
April 17, 2006
NOTE: This is a 3 part series on hosting effective meetings. Obviously, these principles will work anywhere, but I'm putting these ideas out there to help you host energizing men's ministry leadership team meetings.
They assigned me to the church finance committee. It was the first time I had ever attended a church committee meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to approve a budget for the next year. The chair called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. There were about 30 line items on the budget. We haggled back and forth. At 11:30 p.m. we adjourned, everyone utterly frustrated, having agreed on only 3 of the 30 items.
The following year we had a new chair. He called the meeting to order promptly at 7:00 p.m. He handed out a draft budget proposal. At 8:00 p.m. we adjourned our happy committee after approving the entire budget for the next year.
The difference? A concrete draft proposal. The previous year's chair had come to the meeting with the then-current budget and a blank sheet of paper. However, the new chair arrived with a concrete draft of the budget. He had already proposed a budget number for each line item before the meeting ever started. So, instead of bickering over an infinite number of possibilities, we negotiated each line item whether we should go, for example, up $100 or down $1,000.
One great secret to an effective meeting is preparation. Someone needs to invest the time to insure the meeting runs tight. The best way I've ever seen this done is for someone to arrive with a concrete draft proposal-whether it's a budget, monthly goals, a new project, or progress reporting.
Next week, we'll look at why preparation alone is not enough.
Reflection Questions...
- Do you have great meetings or not, and why?
- Do you think the concrete draft proposal idea could help you improve your meeting effectiveness, and how so?
- If you want to give it a try, when is your next leadership meeting and how can you use the idea?
For the glory of Christ and no other reason...
Pat Morley
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