Most of the interventions I design and lead are about gathering people in a meeting room for a specific purpose. When participants enter the room they all have their ideas and expectations about the meeting to come. And I often encounter cynicism. Many of them have had their share of ‘strategic meetings’ and the feeling that this is yet again a waste of time and money is strong.

Empowering is the only way

Empowering the participants is the only way to counter this cynicism. I believe all people have a fundamental wish not only to voice their concerns, but also to give solutions and take action for improvement. So I give leeway in space and time to be able to address the needs of the group and to invite them to come up with their own solutions.

The risk of giving space

But the flipside of empowerment is the feeling of loosing control. And many of my clients, being the leaders of change, become restless when space is granted. They see unfocussed dynamics taking over and fear the drowning of objectives in the cacophony of opinions.

And indeed giving leeway often feels as a risk-taking step. The meeting has been carefully prepared usually with a small dedicated group, so having the participants interfere with the process feels like taking steps back in time. Giving leeway is not simple. It requires three basic rules:

1. Have a clear vision and have it ready before the start of the meeting
2. Let participants ask questions instead of giving their opinions
3. When defining action, define actions that are in the power of the participants

And more often that none these rules are not met during change meetings.