Brainstorming Gone Wild
My death is going to be in the middle of a meeting. Don't let the coroner try to tell you that I died because of a heart attack, or old age, or too much chocolate cake. The cause of death will be "brainstorming session gone bad."
The following three step process is an oversimplified version of how work happens. Step 1: somebody creates a broad vision of some goal or objective. Step 2: the team discusses possible plans for how that goal or objective can be achieved. Step 3: the team implements and executes the plan that the team decided upon.
I love Step 1. Plenty of energy and opportunity there. Endless potential to figure out how we're going to get our organization closer to realizing it's vision. I love Step 3. Action items, deliverables, and deadlines all make me warm and fuzzy.
As for Step 2.....good lord. Step 2 often turns into an unlabeled, unguided brainstorming session, and some people love to hear the sound of their own voice. This happens because once we agree what the goal is, we quickly realize there are plenty of good options for achieving the goal. Reasonable people can disagree about which way is the best way to go, and still agree there are various routes to success.
80% of the time I'm in meetings, we're stuck in Step 2. Sometimes I will step in to drive the conversation to some decisions, but there is plenty of push back for that, as "we want to be sure we have considered all of our options." Sometimes I let the idea parade waltz through the meeting until we get to the end of our time with no decisions made, and then have to schedule another meeting for follow up.
It's funny that as I write this, I realize that I have been defaulting to multitasking while allowing the idea parade to wander through the meetings I attend. While it's sometimes uncomfortable to drive the conversation forward to decision, it's necessary for somebody, anybody, to play that role. I'm going to get back to that role for my personal health, as I don't want to die from an overdose of brainstorming.
