Facilitated Thinking Technology

Problem: Literature describing how to hold successful meetings has been widely disseminated and in abundance for over 40 years. Today, Amazon has over 300 offerings for “improving meetings”. One of them, How to Make Meetings Work, a book published by Michael Doyle in 1976, is still selling well. So WHY ARE so many people still complaining about wasted time in unproductive meetings?

The reason is current meeting practices focus on agendas and “WHAT” the meeting should accomplish. But as professional facilitators know, it is more critical to focus on process and “How” to accomplish results.

Solution: The secrets for successful meetings come from having a “Facilitator Mindset” that concentrates on “How” to improve meeting participants’ “productivity of thought.” This application is like having a facilitator-in-a-box ready to guide you to plan, run, and follow-up to ensure effective meeting results.

Screen shot: Below is a screen shot of the toolkit menu. Note: blue hyperlinks are not active.

MindSights

Professional Meeting Facilitator

(Planning and Running Great Meetings – Every Time)

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Navigation & the Secrets of Professional Meeting Facilitators

Step 1: Planning the Meeting

◙ Decide if a meeting is even needed.

◙ Basic meeting components and decisions.

◙ Meeting Purpose & Planning Thinklet

◙ Identify the right meeting Participants

Step 2: Developing the Agenda

◙ Prepare for opening the meeting

(Introductions, Meeting Focus & Ground Rules)

◙ Prepare Agenda

◙ Prepare for closing the meeting

Step 3: Leading the Meeting

◙ Determine your meeting delivery approach

◙ Determine meeting logistics

◙ Select Meeting Productivity tools

◙ Anticipate common meeting problems

Step 4: Post-meeting Evaluation and Action item Follow-up

◙ Post meeting basics

◙ Conduct a facilitator assessment

◙ Conduct post meeting Evaluation & Action Follow-up

Addendum I: Meeting Productivity Tools

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