1. Specific changes for the next call (Sun Jun 20)
1.1. 1. make goals of the call more explicit
1.1.1. with the goals being...
1.1.1.1. (re-)connecting with high energy, motivated, focused, positive, ... people
1.1.1.2. i.e. finding those people on the call and over time building great relationships with them
1.1.1.3. raising everyone's energy
1.1.1.4. providing mutual encouragement and inspiration
1.1.2. how to do that?
1.1.2.1. the group leaders can blog about it
1.1.2.1.1. Matty
1.1.2.1.2. Denis
1.1.2.1.3. possibly other core people like Jeff, Mike, Jack B, Teresa, Sonya, ... can spread the word, too
1.1.2.2. include a few words about the goals in the call announcements
1.1.2.3. say a few inspiring words about the goals at the beginning of every call
1.2. 2. use Skype as technology again, prepare gotomeeting as alternative solution if too many participants for Skype
1.2.1. TODO
1.2.1.1. denis: create gotowebinar account
1.2.1.2. schedule test meeting, test it with 2-5 people
1.2.2. further reasoning
1.2.2.1. whether or not we use Skype for our calls it is still one of the best ways to stay more closely connected with the individual people within the group
1.2.2.2. so we should encourage its use anyway
1.2.2.3. maybe try something like "15 minutes before call = (even more) informal meeting on skype just for hanging out and chatting a bit"?
1.3. 3. establish a few basic rules for giving and receiving feedback
1.3.1. rules for giving feedback
1.3.1.1. state ideas, suggestions, advice in a neutral, receiver-empowering way, e.g. ...
1.3.1.1.1. "here's what worked for me... XYZ... how do you feel about trying such a thing?"
1.3.1.1.2. "I heard of someone doing XYZ, do you think that might help you there?"
1.3.1.1.3. "does XYZ resonate with you?"
1.3.1.1.4. "one could probably do it like XYZ. does that give you any ideas how you could apply something similar?"
1.3.1.2. the meeting's character should be more like a brainstorming session rather than a consultation / coaching
1.3.1.3. never force any idea, opinion, suggestion etc on someone else, be aware that it is always the other person's choice to take your idea or not and the more everyone is aware of this, the more productive the conversation will be overall
1.3.2. rules for receiving feedback
1.3.2.1. if something you get doesn't resonate with you, just state it so the conversation can stay effective and engaging, e.g. "I appreciate your feedback, but this idea just doesn't resonate with me, even though there is lots of people who can and do have great success implementing it"
1.3.2.2. if you WANT specific advice and suggestions, state that explicitly, but still don't hesitate to lead the feedback in terms of expressing what you do or do not resonate with
1.4. 4. establishing a few basic rules for sharing
1.4.1. focus on challenges and brainstorming solutions rather than on problems
1.4.2. focus on the present and to some degree the future rather than the past
1.4.3. equal opportunities for sharing, everyone is encouraged to share
1.4.3.1. the problems this should solve are...
1.4.3.1.1. too often the same people were sharing in 2 or more calls in a row, even if there was nothing really new, inspiring, challenging, ... about their situation
1.4.3.1.2. people who are a little bit shy should be sharing first before someone who already shared many times in the not-too-distant past
1.5. 5. format changes
1.5.1. 1. intentions
1.5.1.1. idea: it would raise the energy and help create more value for everyone individually and the group collectively if every single participant had a strong intention for every single call
1.5.1.1.1. in the beginning of the call ask everyone to think about what their intention for this meeting is, let them really feel it and let it go (so people create intentions rather than expectations which may not be met and then lead to disappointment)
1.5.1.1.2. and then ask who would like to share their intention for today (up to 3-5 people)
1.5.1.1.3. overall this should take 2 minutes, certainly less than 5
1.5.2. 2. introductions
1.5.2.1. philosophy behind this: allow people to start building individual connections; from the very first moment make every single participant feel like they are part of the group
1.5.2.2. do them in the beginning of the call; at first limit it to 3 introductions max. per call, then after that segment ask for feedback and possibly continue with introductions or switch to the regular sharing segment
1.5.2.3. I'm thinking - if things go well - within 3 weeks for being allowed to share it should be mandatory having 1) introduced yourself on the call and 2) posted a short bio / context / summary of intro in whatever place we will use to store those introductions -- otherwise, if people don't have that information about the person sharing, that sharing segment has a lot less value for the person sharing and for the whole group, too
1.5.2.4. in the beginning we can just ask people to introduce themselves before they share (i.e. either they take their chance for the introduction at the beginning or they include a really short one right when they start sharing) and strongly encourage them to post the introduction in the forums / google groups / whatever we will use
1.5.2.5. and even though mid-/long-term a non-public place would be more appropriate (like google groups or so), I think in the beginning just using a thread in the CGW forums will work better
1.5.3. 3. closing feedback
1.5.3.1. ask participants for feedback about the call in the end
1.5.3.2. "something you liked a lot particularly? something you'd like to see improved next time?"
1.5.3.3. do it before the meditation (if there is one)
1.5.4. 4. closing words
1.5.4.1. plan the next meeting if there is something to plan
1.5.4.1.1. assigning roles (meditation, introductions?, sharing?)
1.5.5. 5. closing meditation
1.5.5.1. take 5-10 minutes for it
1.5.5.2. rotate the role of who brings a meditation
1.5.5.3. lead in to the actual meditation with a minute or so of intentional relaxation, deep breathing
2. Vision for the Call
2.1. Focus
2.2. Everyone gets value every time
2.3. Valuable Feedback Only
2.4. High Energy People
2.5. High Energy Topics
2.6. Create and strengthen connections between individuals and within the group
3. Changes that we can experiment with later
3.1. action-commitment-accountability "module"
3.2. talk module
3.2.1. i.e. someone gives a short (15 min) talk about a topic that's of interest to the group = value for the group (content) + value for the speaker (practicing speaking & teaching)
3.2.2. we can already announce this as a possibility, see what feedback we get on that