So what do you do when your well-meaning, enthusiastic team-member is just talking too much in meetings?  It’s tricky, particularly in virtual meetings.

“Hi Karin, I watched your #AskingforaFriend about how to encourage people to speak up more in meetings, but I’ve got the EXACT OPPOSITE CHALLENGE. I’ve got a well-meaning, really strong performer, who is talking too much. I don’t want to squash his enthusiasm, but I also don’t want him to shut other people down. What should I do?”

Three Ways to Get More Voices in the Room

3 Ways to Encourage a More Inclusive Conversation

1. Go directly to the employee who is talking too much

Of course, the obvious place to start is to have a caring, straightforward conversation with the employee. Ask them to help resolve the issue by taking some ownership around bringing more voices into the room. If this person is talking too much, chances are they are confident speaking up in a group and have some influence among their colleagues.

So, they could try using their voice to empower others versus stealing the show. If you need some pointers on how to initiate a challenging conversation read this article, How to Start the Conversation Everyone Wants to Avoid.

2. Reset expectations for the entire team

Inclusive and collaborative meetings are essential for driving innovation and fostering a thriving team dynamic. It’s not just that you want the employee who is talking too much to talk less….you want other people to talk more. You want everyone to have an equal opportunity to share their ideas so you can unlock the full potential of your team. Invite everyone to come prepared with one idea on how to make your meetings more inclusive.

You might go a step further and dedicate an entire session to idea generation to get the wheels spinning. Download our free I.D.E.A. Incubator Guide to hear less from the guy who is talking too much and hear more from the rest of the team. Using a structured facilitation technique will also make it clear to the person talking too much that you’re not interested in letting one person monopolize the conversation.

3. When people are talking too much, use the power of chat

To make sure everyone has the chance to speak up try using the chat feature or other technology tools. One way to do this is before you ask a question make it clear you want everyone’s input. Stop one person from talking too much by asking everyone to put their fingers on their keyboard and get ready to respond. Then take time to read some of the responses out loud to let your team know you’re paying attention.

You could also leverage technology tools to facilitate equal participation, especially in larger meetings or remote settings. Try programs like interactive polling apps, virtual whiteboards, or collaboration software to give your team alternative ways to share their ideas. This way the ones who aren’t talking too much have a chance to contribute, regardless of their communication style or level of extroversion.

Lastly, don’t forget to recognize and celebrate the contributions of each person on your team. Regardless of the size or impact of their ideas, they need to know that their voice is important. Create a courageous culture where people speak up and idea sharing and innovative thinking are normalized. By doing so, you promote a sense of collective ownership and inspire individuals to share their ideas.

That’s a start. What are your best practices for keeping one person from talking too much and making your meetings more inclusive? Please share in the comments below.

And, if you’re ready for your teams to accelerate performance and create sustainable positive culture change from within, download a free demo of our Team Accelerator manager-led program here.

The post How to Encourage an Employee Stop Talking Too Much (Without Squashing Their Enthusiasm) appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.

In one way or another, your team has had an incredible year. And, an incredible year calls for an incredible end-of-year meeting.

Fill in the blank:

This year was incredibly ________(successful, challenging, stressful, unusual)…

Maybe you’re remarkably proud of all you accomplished.  Or like most of us, you managed a  crazy Covid curveball that derailed your plans and caused a fast pivot.  Or, perhaps it was one frustration and another, and you just can’t wait for the calendar to turn over and start again.

Your team’s feeling it too.

Don’t throw the opportunity to pause and reflect out with the holiday wrappings. Carve out time to talk about what you learned in an end-of-year meeting.

It’s tempting to have a “no one talks about work” virtual luncheon, do the secret Santa thing, and have a few giggles.

Or, to jump right into planning for the new year, “after all the past is behind us.”

The best meetings build both results and relationships, and an end-of-year meeting done remarkably well sets the stage for thoughtful reflection and a more energized start to the new year.

How to Have a Remarkable End-of-Year Meeting

Make a CAREful plan and have your best end-of-year meeting ever.

C- Celebrate 

Celebrate both results and the human beings who achieved them.

Be sure your team knows the Most Important Things (MIT) they accomplished in terms of both results and building relationships.

For example, it’s not just the 28% increase in efficiency, it’s also that they improved the contentious relationship with IT that made the collaboration possible.

If you’re doing formal recognition, resist the urge to just pick the top three by the numbers of a stack rank. Consider HOW the results were achieved.

There’s nothing more demoralizing to a team than seeing their boss recognize some bozo who gamed and back-stabbed his way to the top. If there’s any chance your team will be texting one another “WTF” when an award is given, supplement your criteria to include behaviors that matter.

A-Acknowledge

Acknowledge the disappointments and what you could have done better.

Talk about the effort that may not have paid off the way you would have hoped, and celebrate what did.

When we ask our keynote audiences  “What’s one thing you feel underappreciated for at work?,” the number one answer is always, “The time I spend developing my people.” Acknowledge that too.

R-Renew

Do something to refresh and renew.

One year one of my sales managers took his team bird watching in the local park, before digging into their strategic review.

Another year I hired a caricature artist to do a composite sketch of the team.

Another time, we had a white elephant exchange, but instead of wacky presents, each member of the team brought their favorite business book— people were stealing from one another right and left, and the side effect was a lot of strategic reading and dialogue happening that year.

Most years at Verizon, I brought my team to my home for a planning session followed by a dinner celebration. Find some way to refresh and have some fun along with the reflection and planning.

E-Engage

Engage the team. Ask each team member to reflect on their own contributions in terms of results and relationships this year, as well as disappointments.

If you’re holding a small meeting with just your direct reports give them time to share. If you’re hosting a larger event, there are lots of fun ways to engage and capture reflections, from sticky notes and grouping themes; to “best of”/”worst of” reflections on index cards collected at the beginning and sorted into themes; to simple polling texting apps, with results projected immediately on the screen.

Find a way to get your team’s best view of the year into the conversation at your end-of-year meeting.

2021 Virtual Meetings Update

If you’re looking to host a 2021 End-of-year meeting or planning a virtual kick-off meeting to start the new year, you won’t want to miss Virtual Kick-off Meeting: Why You Should Have One and How to Make it Great.

Ready to rally YOUR team for breakthrough results with Let’s Grow Leaders?

Plan a fast start to your New Year! Establish a Courageous Culture of critical thinkers, problem solvers and customer advocates in your organization with a Team Innovation Challenge or Executive Leadership Workshop. These strategic innovation events – in person or virtual – will help shape the culture of your organization, skyrocket employee engagement and clear the path for increased team innovation.

Let’s Grow Leaders programs are highly customized to your organization’s needs, hands-on and interactive. Get ready for leadership development that sticks.

And check out our interview in Authority Magazine: Karin Hurt and David Dye of ‘Let’s Grow Leaders’: 5 Things You Need To Know To Successfully Run a Live Virtual Event

See Also: How to Hold a Motivational Meeting

The Secret to Great Skip Level Meetings

Avoid This Infuriating Phrases in End-oof Year Feedback

4 U.G.L.Y. Conversations to Have With Your Team Before Year-End

The post End-of-Year Meeting: How to Make Yours Remarkable appeared first on Let's Grow Leaders.