Have we all arrived (Part 2)

Last week, we talked about how I attempt to gather all my “parts” before I enter into a high-stakes conversation, especially if there’s potential for hurt feelings or nuance that might be missed.

I do that because I need my analytical mind, spidey-sense, bridge-builder people skills, and hard-nosed business skills; I need all of them together to be at my best.

But there’s another situation in which we often leave out parts that, if present, could create more optimal outcomes – when working as a team.

Who’s missing?

When I bring my whole team together, it’s usually because we’re working on something critical. I need multiple perspectives, backgrounds, and skill sets to achieve the amazing outcome we’re known for. That’s why they’re all there!

But I also know that just because I called a meeting on Wednesday at 2, doesn’t mean that this problem is top-of-mind for each one of my team members at that time!

If I want to engage all the big brains in the room with the problem, I must also ensure they bring their whole selves to the conversation.

Engaging all the players

Our ritual for bringing everyone into the room is to start the meeting with gratitude. We ask each team member to mention something they’re grateful for about someone else on the team or to say something about the project they feel is going well.

That 5 minutes of gratitude turns on the relational circuits in our brains and creates connection between us.

Then, as we get into the topic, everyone gets an equal chance to talk before any discussion or cross-talk. This helps ensure everyone’s ideas are on the table before any evaluation or hierarchy is involved.

How do you engage everyone in the room to guarantee that you get the best ideas on the table with every team member invested in the solution? I’d love to hear what works for you. Hit reply and let me know.