Make Space for Every Voice
"If you want stronger decisions, make space for every voice." This is a simple technique to do this in your meetings that really works.
I think this principle is absolutely core.
“Punting on facilitation leads to outcomes so predictable that you might as well be making a deliberate choice. We all know how it plays out. A question is asked to the group in a team meeting. The same people tend to be the first to speak up, they might be the loudest, the most extroverted, the most senior, the most powerful, or the most confident. And what they put out there tends to shape the rest of the meeting. The framing they introduce ends up dominating the conversation.”
In the venture capital investment meeting that Corey goes on to describe, I was the Director of Investments in the room. Everyone would reflect first, then state their opinion, and we’d go round the room so that everyone had spoken their mind, starting with the minority opinions. The people in the room with the most power went last. It was consultative, but the expectation was that I would listen carefully to everyone’s opinion, and I did. It felt to me like a safe environment where everyone could truly participate; some of our most important contributions came from our interns and producers, so it meaningfully affected who received investment, what strategies we pursued, and how we thought about building community.
I’ve also seen two other versions of this play out many times. One is where the framing is presented by a leader and other people react to it; typically, inevitably, the leader’s framing and perspective are maintained. The other is a laissez-faire attitude to discussion, which always creates a world where the people with the loudest voices and the most power dominate. Both are monocultures that, whether consciously or not, serve to enforce existing power structures.
Having a small number of voices dominate hurts the work. By making it clear that everyone’s voice matters and making it safe for everyone to contribute, we widen the gene pool of ideas. By nurturing a more inclusive community and set of processes, all of our work is elevated, because we’re exposed to more perspectives and more expertise. And by not putting our thumb on the scales as leaders, we make the most of the smart, insightful people we’ve hired.
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