Wednesday, November 28, 2012

#180 not guilty

My advice from being called twice to serve on jury duty:  if you have to be on the jury, be the foreman.  

If I am going to spend my time at the trial and deliberation, I want to see a productive outcome (verdict) as a result.  So if I have to be there, I'm going to step up and lead the discussion to help us stay on topic.

The same principle applies to meetings outside the legal arena.  If you have to be at a meeting, act like the foreman.  Take an active role in the discussion to frame the issue, bring out the various views, point out the commonalities and move the group toward action.  The foreman is a facilitator, not dictator, and it is a good model to follow.  

You don't need to hold an official position of power to help move the meeting along.  If you have been convened with the purpose of deciding, step up to the role.  Whether your goal is group consensus or majority rule, you can help drive the discussion to facilitate action.  

Don't just sit there and be guilty of leaving the verdict of the meeting in someone else's hands.

-- beth triplett
leadershipdots.blogspot.com
@leadershipdots
leadershipdots@gmail.com

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