A lot of my work takes place in the form of meetings. I am participating in other people’s meetings or planning my own meetings. Meetings can be a great forum for communication and knowledge sharing though sometimes they don’t always turn out that way.
I was struck recently by an article published by the Asian Development Bank called Conducting Effective Meetings. It made me think about the different types of meetings we hold and their various natures. In understanding the difference between an advisory meeting and a committee meeting, how might I conduct it differently?
I am planning an advisory committee meeting for December 1st and based on the article I will pay attention to some underlying realities such as: the advisory meeting is to share information, listen to questions/views and seek advice.
Some things I have been preparing in order to have a successful meeting have been:
- using technology to go beyond the traditional teleconference (we will use GoTo Webinar)
- polling for a convenient date/time for everyone using doodle.com
- providing opportunities for agenda input
- providing an agenda with specific objectives and time allocations as well as background documents at least a week in advance
- ensuring the topics for discussion are interesting, well thought out and have clear questions that I seek advice on
I have two weeks further to prep. I will keep you posted on how it goes.
I recently read a short piece that questioned the concept of Best Practices. This really resonates with me.
Often I am persuaded to write best practices as summaries to my work, for example in case studies. However I tend to agree with David Gurteen, author of the ’Knowledge Letter’: ”Instead of looking at best practice, focus your attention on the particularities of your situation, trying to understand all the factors at work, not just those prescribed in your model or best practice. Reflect on how your own participation is affecting, and is affected by, the way these factors are playing out in your organisation. That way you can help to make sure your attention is on what really matters so much more than a best practice or model. Ask how you or others are interacting with each other and influencing each other in the process of getting the work done.” In other words “think for yourself!”
This philosophy is important for my work. Rather than directing the communities I am working with to follow the best practices of those before them, I am trying to encourage them to use the lessons as a guide but decide their own activities and future. Innovation means tweaking the norm and taking risks. As David Gurteen says, it means thinking for yourself. I can support that.
In this exclusive interview, social media expert Euan Semple breaks social media down into easy to understand terms and explains not only why every business should at least have a look at social media but also how they can make a start without the need of employing expensive agencies and IT professionals.
I am buying my first house. I am told by family and friends that this is one of the biggest decisions I will make in my life. Given I am shy of long term commitments, they are correct. The two key words I think about in learning about buying a house are Trust and Knowledge Management.
Trust is very important in buying an old house. If one doesn’t know much about homes, building or renovations, one needs to trust the people who hold this knowledge.
The realtor is the interface between your new house and the buyer. The agent should look out for your best interest and help get you what you want. After this, you have the home inspector, the potential contractors and builders and friends who help you assess if the house is solid, fixable, and a good buy. If these people are strangers to you, family might come into play and add their two cents based on experience.
Knowledge Management is very important in several ways.
First, in order to have the full picture of the house you are buying you need to draw on several sources. Using relationships and networks to find people you trust to provide input builds confidence in the decision making process.
Second, online research is important to ground truth information. If there is a lack of trust in any of the people you rely on to make the purchase decision, online resources provide background information, provincial regulations and additional questions to consider.
My situation has been mixed. I am using my networks to bring as much information to the table as possible so I can make an informed decision. When in doubt, I find more human and online resources to verify my thinking. I am learning that trust is essential in making a large purchase decision. However, it really boils down to gut instincts and the rest is justification for rationale minds!
In 2003, I wrote my master’s thesis on Canada’s Youth Summit Team. This was a select group of diverse, geographically representative youth helping Canada’s government and young people prepare for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (2002).
After two years of volunteering on the project with the United Nation’s Association in Canada and then researching and writing a thesis about the experience, I am pleased that others might share and learn from my reflections.
The book will be launched at the forthcoming 12th General Conference of the Association of African Universities (AAU) in Abuja, Nigeria from May 4 – 9, 2009 and the 5th World Congress on Environmental Education (WEEC 5) from May 10-14, 2009 in Montreal, Canada.
If you are having a hard time keeping up with changes in technology, information, life…welcome to the club. This short video from YouTube posts numbers to tell us exactly what is taking place on planet Earth. It’s amazing how information is moving faster than ever and how that influences our lives. Well worth the five minutes to view!!
I often try and create conversation in my work as I truly believe that is how knowledge is shared. Conversations are filled with stories and many great leaders use these stories to influence change.
Steve Jobs gave a speech at a Stanford University convocation and it’s posted on YouTube. He used three distinct stories that had great lessons to get his message across. These stories were personal, told with I and very real.
Storytelling is powerful and this little clip clearly demonstrates that. Try it!
