The Magic Tool for Easier Meetings in English

Hi guys, this is Christina from Speak Better, Feel Great TV.

The place to boost your English and boost your career.

In your conf calls in English,

how often have you felt like

just an observer?

Maybe you don’t participate as much as you’d like

because you’re not sure to understand,

or the Americans dominate the discussion,

or you’re afraid of making a lot of mistakes.

Today, I’ll show you

THE tool for easier conf calls in English.

Ya ready?

What is this magical tool, you ask yourself?

It’s not magic, it’s…

an agenda.

The agenda is the list of topics you’ll discuss in your conf call.

And it will make your conf calls in English

easier.

Now, an agenda should be more than just a list of topics.

To really make a difference, it should be

detailed.

Really detailed.

Include the names of all the participants.

Include the list of topics that’ll be discussed

and make sure they’re in order.

Also,

indicate the name of the person responsible for leading each discussion.

Finally,

put time limits for each subject of discussion.

Sound like a lot of work?

Well, let’s look at why it’s worth the time and effort.

Seeing the names of all the participants helps you to match voices to speakers.

And if you can see the name,

you can more easily associate a specific voice with it during the discussions.

Listing all topics

in order helps you follow the discussions more easily.

If you know the subject already,

you can concentrate on understanding the message.

You’re not trying to figure out what everyone’s talking about.

If you know in advance

who will lead specific discussions,

you can contact them with questions

or to tell them in advance you have something to contribute.

It'll be

easier to participate,

because they can ask you if you want to intervene.

Time limits

prevent conf calls from becoming

endless discussions,

and they also distribute the talking time more equally.

If Bob the big American knows that there are only

15 minutes to discuss the Paris project,

he’ll probably shut up and let the French participants,

like you,

say something.

Since you’ll have more opportunities to speak,

you should also use the agenda to prepare your intervention.

Preparing will help you feel more confident and organized,

and you’ll speak better.

Trust me. I do conf calls pretty often and the ones with agendas are a LOT

easier.

So, here’s the recap:

For easier conf calls in English, make sure you have a detailed agenda.

Include participants’ names,

topics of discussion in order,

the person leading each discussion,

and time limits.

You’ll save time and energy in your conf calls

and

you’ll understand more.

Here’s your Speak Better, Feel Great challenge for this week:

If you lead conf calls,

send a detailed agenda to participants.

If you don’t lead,

ask the organizer to provide a detailed agenda

Or volunteer to create it.

You’ll see how much of a difference it really makes.

Then

come back and tell us about your conf call

in the comments section below.

Remember

Remember the best way to boost your English and boost your career is to work

regularly on your English communication skills.

Sign up for the Speak Better, Feel Great Blog

and you’ll get one tip a week delivered directly to your inbox.

Even if you don’t have a lot of time in your busy schedule,

I’ll make sure that you improve the way you work in English

a little each week.

Go ahead and sign up at christinarebuffet.com.

I’m Christina, from Speak Better, Feel Great TV.

See ya next time!