Dismantling the meeting, bit by bit

There are aspects of meetings I’ve always just accepted. There are other aspects I’ve always been uneasy about, but gone along with. Hmmm, probably not the kind of thing one should admit to on the internet.

Over the last year or so I’ve had the opportunity and the catalysts to challenge that acceptance and ‘going along with’ and make changes in how I think about meetings and how I approach them as a facilitator. Some of those catalysts have been in the form of wise words from co-facilitators. Some in the form of articles and blog posts – the joy of the web is that you can access thoughts of facilitators you may never meet.

Viv McWaters has just contributes a good-sized catalyst to the process of dismantling the meeting bit by bit in her post the myth of the agenda. Read it. Here’s a taste to tempt you:

An agenda is wallpaper – it covers the cracks in your meeting by pretending to provide structure and control. And certainty. When groups of people get together, yes, even for a meeting, amazing things can happen – if you allow it. An agenda is all about control and apparent efficiency. It’s also about someone being in charge – deciding what will and will not be on the agenda. It’s just another example of a one-to-many process.