Better ways of being

As teams come together online more often, there are ways to ‘be’ that help make things easier. 

Whether your online meeting or gathering has just one other person, or there are four, seven or 12 of you...

Watch out for these old, dated behaviours:

Interrupter
Hogger
Judger
Dismisser 
Player
Disruptor 
Distractor
Minimizer
Deflector
... oooh it’s not good is it 
Hider
Denier
Accuser


When times are challenging, stress is high or uncertainty is present, it can be easy to fall back into a ‘survival default’ of sorts where there is pointing and blaming or hiding and ignoring for survival. 

Newer and better ways of being include doing things to support the group (and not always speeding to a solution or decision.)

We all contribute to an environment and a conversation that’s safer and more collaborative. 

If I’m challenged and find it hard to bring the ‘better me’, then I look to these roles. They’re helpful anyway, and keep us in a more resourceful state:

Synthesiser
Integrater
Summarizer
Slicer 
Supporter
Enquirer 
Listener 
Reflector
Participator
Contributor 
Validator 
Elevator.


Think: 
Am I making things easier or harder?
Am I trying to make myself feel better about something here?
Is this going to be helpful?

Fresh skills we want to learn

How does a team adapt in an environment of change like the world is experiencing now? 

What skills do leaders need to better lead in these times?

Remote work, extreme uncertainty and ongoing complex change are impacting so many sectors and organisations. 

Old learning topics like body language, negotiation skills and time management are being overtaken by more contemporary, practical and inspiring skills. 

These skills are more related to today’s workplace and aligned to the capabilities people need to be able to work better together. 

Plus they’re the kinds of skills people want to learn!

They are: 
Ingenuity 
Empathy
Creativity 
Curiosity 

Facilitation 
Visualization 
Experimentation 
Improvisation 

Sensemaking
Listening
Learning
Collaborating.


These kinds of skills help us stay relevant and motivated in the learning ... as well as the daily application. 

How creative could you be

Too many boring and dull online meetings, right?

How do we make things more interesting? And are we waiting for someone else to do the ‘be more creative’ thing?

There’s a personal scale of creativity - things that I think are creative and engaging, you may not. And vice versa. 

With that in mind, we can design and lead a number of creative exercises or activities that work in online meetings. 

Things like:
- Starter or kick off activities 
- Short icebreakers
- Introduction questions
- Quick energizers 
- Focus exercises to bring us back on topic 
- Get to know you activities 
- Idea generation exercises 
- Wrap up and summary tasks.  

None of them have to be long and drawn out. Some people wrongly think we don’t have time to bring more creativity to online meetings.

Even short bursts of a different activity can lift a mood, boost interest and attention or change the level of engagement. 

Times are tough anyway. We don’t need to make the mood worse with dull and drawn out online meetings!

It’s worth a little more effort to make the hours we spend online more interesting and more effective. 

We can all make a creative contribution here, whether leading the activity ... or participating in it. 

‘Does that make sense?’

We ask this question when we’re thinking, talking, meeting, training, and presenting. 

It’s to check with ourselves - am I making sense to myself? 

And then ... am I making sense to you? 

It’s kind of asking, ‘Do you get it?’

We use the phrase ‘making sense' habitually and unconsciously. It’s a human thing. 

We develop our natural Sensemaking abilities as we learn and grow up. 

But given the changing and uncertain world we live in, being able to build and accelerate our Sensemaking capabilities means we can get to decisions sooner. 

And then take action sooner, despite the uncertainty. 

When you hesitate and procrastinated it could be because things aren’t making sense. We may keep plodding along waiting until they do. 

But if we use some Sensemaking tools and techniques, we can move on from indecision and hesitation... to action. 

It’s quite empowering and momentum building! 

Listen out for ‘does that make sense?’ It’s a sign we are most certainly in Sensemaking mode for ourselves ... and others. 

Why it’s worth being a little more creative in meetings

You don’t have to go way out there creative. Just a little can make a difference. 


🔶 For participants 

Are they participants - they’ll be doing, contributing and participating? Or are they attendees, an audience of spectators just watching and listening?

Creativity brings focus, stimulation to keep interest high and helps hold attention. 

Creativity makes memories. If you’re dealing with dry or complex matters, creativity anchors the key points. 

It brings content to life!


🔶 For you 

Creativity helps you stay interested. If it’s good for you, it’s likely to be good for them too. 

Moods and energy are infectious. If you’re not feelin’ it, they won’t be!

Creativity helps keep content fresh if it’s repetitive or the same topic as the last meeting. 

Variety alerts us. 


Many meetings are experiences of monotonous boredom. They benefit from injections of creativity. 

You don’t have to go for crazy creativity. A subtle or clever activity can build engagement, make swifter progress and help reach better outcomes. 

Are you using creativity in meetings?