School Leaders: Stop Causing Anxiety and Wasting Time When You Call A Meeting

Don’t call people to a meeting blind.

Let them know what is to be discussed.

What should they be thinking about beforehand?

Time is too precious.

No one should show up and be expected to begin thinking on the spot.

The meeting starts as soon as you send the invite.

Present the prework.

Allow people to show up ready to engage.

Done correctly team members can think and discuss before the meeting even begins.

As school leaders, we need to remember that our teachers are busy.

They don’t have the same kind of time that we have to ponder the bigger picture. They are busy being student-centered.

Give them the picture. Give them the time.

No gotchas. No on-the-spot brainstorming.

Ask people to commit themselves to digging into the data or subjects central to the discussion.

What if they don’t do the prework?

Don’t give up on this powerful strategy.

Most leaders do not make this an expectation. Thus it does not become a habit.

Call out the behavior when people show up unprepared.

Not in anger. But simply reminding people why the expectation is set.

We are asking the team to value each other’s time.

We want the best ideas that each person can bring to the table.

That is rarely an off-the-cuff remark or “winging” it in the meeting.

On the best teams, in the best classrooms, prework is the entry ticket.

No matter what your status or position.

When this standard is modeled the productivity of these meetings sells the idea. The productivity in classrooms where everyone has done the prework is a sight to behold.

Good leaders provide clarity.

Good leaders provide direction.

No guesswork.

No opaque meeting request.

When everyone is prepared we are primed to make the most of meetings.

We are ready to learn together.