While I was doing a consulting job in Silicon Valley, I got invited to sit in on a high-end team building training for Genentech. The attendees were “Double Docs” – meaning physicians and PhD holders – bright and eager to learn. The training was a canned presentation by a novice trainer — an overall disaster.
It was agony to watch!
After lunch, the attendees confronted the trainer about the content, and went off on their own agenda for the afternoon. (Unfortunately, It wasn’t my first or last time to observe an over-priced sub-par training that totally missed the mark.)
For me , the positive take-away was learning the 4 question method those leaders used. I’ve taught it ever since, and it makes a great team activity. (It is similar to a SWOT analysis).
Making a difference means making a difference in direct relation to the mission, vision, project goals, etc.
What’s going right and making a difference?
What’s going right and not making a difference?
What’s not going right that would make a difference if it were?
What’s not going right that wouldn’t make a difference anyway?
APPLY:
Send these questions out before a meeting.
Ask attendees to bring answers.
Observe how this shifts the meeting tone, participation, and intent.
Note how much new information you glean from doing it.
