5 Steps to Successfully Leading your Next Meeting.

Scenario.

You are about to lead your first important meeting and you desperately want to do your best. Sitting in this meeting, you will be surrounded by your peers, senior advisers, the guy that writes your checks and the woman that hired you.


You feel a tremendous amount of pressure. You doubt yourself.
You find yourself re- thinking, re-editing and re-evaluating.

As the meeting begins, you step up to lead and find yourself frozen.
Everyone is looking at you...or better said , staring a hole right through you.

We have all been there.
Fortunately for you, today's post will equip you with a winning presentation strategy.

Follow these simple steps and watch people's frowns turn upside down.

Step 1:  Gather all your supplies.  You will need different colored markers, a monthly calender, a 3-month calender and a large sheet of white paper.
Got it?  Good. Let's move on...

Sharpies = Check!
Monthly Calender =Check!
3 Month Calender = Check!

Step #2: You want to be as clear, concise, and logical as possible. So, be sure to have all your dates filled in, your details filled out and all of your potential questions answered.  By potential questions, I am referring to the items that your audience will be concerned with. One thing I always do is slip to the other side of the table and imagine every possible detail that the person or group will be thinking. This helps me be as thorough as possible in my presentation.

Step #3: Do not battle your notes.  I have seen this over and over.  People think they struggle with public speaking but they are really struggling with sloppy notes.  It is imperative that your notes are clean, easy to read and logical.  The last thing in the world you want to deal with is hieroglyphics while leading a meeting.

Step #4: Be sure to have a nice visual aid. I love love love having a huge sheet of paper where I can have a strategy map in full view.  I have been using strategy maps for a few years now and I love them.  I always separate each main item with the details in their respective field.  This lets people see and understand how much is involved in whatever you are proposing.  It also allows you to go over each section and ask for volunteer help or assign someone to the task at hand. 

Trust me, you want to utilize the strategy map.

This is my strategy map for our up-and-coming Christmas party at Church.

Step #5:  Always ask if anyone has any questions. 

Then, end with a quick summary of the main points and action steps. 

Finally, give everyone an accountability date.  (A time where people will be held accountable to accomplish whatever task(s) they committed to.)

There you have it!

Follow these 5 simple steps and you will be on your way to leading the best meeting of your career!