Create an Ecosystem for Connection:
Excerpt from Lead Conversations that Count: How Busy Managers Run Great Meetings
(Rowntree Press, 2021)
Working remotely for such a prolonged period even has some introverts wistful for the days when you could sit down with your colleagues in a room for a chat. Just as you want participants to connect to the purpose and context of your work, you’ll want them to relate to each other as well. Create a personal connection time, whether it’s five minutes for a few personal shares or asking people to share in the online chat. Asking how they are doing or their intention for the discussion helps participants shift from whatever they were doing before the meeting and become fully present.
When people meet in person, there is a natural transition time to shift their focus to the meeting. People settle into their chairs, have that first sip of coffee, and have a quick chat with the people sitting next to them. Conversation Leaders use that unstructured time to welcome people, review the agenda, and launch into the first discussion item. The individual participant’s energy is sustained and fed by being in the physical presence of their colleagues. In a survey of meeting science, researcher and author Joseph Allen found that small-talk actually supports better business outcomes and successful meetings than more structured work talk or preparatory remarks about a meeting. “Shooting the breeze with your colleagues, even just for a minute or two before diving into work talk, can make for a better meeting,” Allen advises (Reed & Allen, 2021).
From participating in and witnessing hundreds of virtual meetings over the pandemic, I’ve noticed an important shift in managing participant energy that is different from an in-person meeting. In virtual meetings, that unstructured small-talk connection time typically doesn’t happen. People log in, the meeting leaders wait in silence until the clock indicates it’s time to start, and then the meeting begins. It may sound efficient, but it’s not very welcoming. In a virtual meeting space, you can’t have that spontaneous chat at the coffee station or as you take your seat. Without those warm-up conversations, participants can feel isolated. Connecting strengthens relationships and adds much- needed energy to the meeting.
Take Action
What activities could you take to foster more authentic personal connection time for your meeting participants?
In what ways might some unstructured time for discussion or reflection support innovation and collaboration within your team?
Resources
Activities from the Improv Encyclopedia.
Author Information: This is an excerpt from Lead Conversations that Count: How Busy Managers Run Great Meetings by Carolyn Ellis (Rowntree Press, 2021). For more information on the book, please visit www.LeadConversationsThatCount.com. This article may be shared provided the author information is included.
