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FACILITATING COUNCIL MEETINGS EFFECTIVELY …The genius of our church government is government through councils… Hardly a day passes but that I see the wisdom, God’s wisdom, in creating councils: to govern his Kingdom. Men can get together with seemingly divergent views and far different backgrounds, and under the operation of the spirit, by counseling together, they can arrive at an accord. Pres. Stephen L. Richards, Conference Report, October 1953.

“Appoint among yourselves a teacher (or a facilitator), and let not all be spokesmen at once; but let one speak at a time and let all listen unto his saying.” (D&C 88:122) As a church leader, you will find yourself facilitating discussions. Discussions are an integral part of our council system. Your role is to direct the flow of comments from participants. Some participants may speak too much and take most of the time, while others speak too little and are not able to contribute. You would like to ensure that everyone in the group is involved. The objective of the discussion is to obtain inputs from everybody towards resolving issues and concerns and then to effectively use the ideas to create positive change.

Some things to remember when facilitating discussions: You are the moderator. You are not a speaker. As moderator your job is to get everybody involved. Therefore, you should limit your speaking time. You determine who is speaking and for how long, whom to ask for suggestions, when to call those who are not speaking, etc. Prepare council meeting room and ensure that it is clean, free from distraction, and conducive to the meeting. Arrange the chairs in such a way that you are able to see everybody. Introduce some ground rules such as: let’s raise our hands if you want the floor to speak; let’s listen to the speaker while speaking; let’s avoid talking to our seat mates when one is speaking; let’s make our remarks brief and concise to give everybody a chance to share their ideas, etc. Preview the topic at hand and give everyone a background of the issue. Then give them time to pause and think.

Start and end the meeting on time. When the discussions go beyond the time limit, people become restless and distracted. Summarize the highlights of the discussion at the end of the meeting and delegate assignments when necessary. Record to whom the assignments were given to pinpoint responsibility and follow-through later.

Conducting Council Meetings

Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles has said of the significance of the council system as part of church governance – “….One of the great strengths of council system is the flexibility it provides to develop and implement local solutions to local problems.” [Counseling with Councils, 15] Elder Ballard further also outlined several principles to guide us in effectively leading these meetings. •

Leaders should bring a sense of vision or purpose to the council.

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Councils should provide time for discussing differing views.

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Leaders should respect the agency of council members.

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Leaders should give clear and precise instructions.

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Leaders should delegate.

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Leaders should set example for members of their council.

He further suggested how a council might work on solving problems. •

The problem is clearly outlined and articulated, but the council isn’t allowed to dwell on negativity.

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The council leader controls the flow of the discussion without dominating it. He asks questions and calls for opinions, and then he listens.

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Council members speak from their own perspective as individuals and not just as representatives of their own organizations.

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Council members first identify the desired end result, and then determine how to achieve it.

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In its deliberations, the council never strays far from the mission of the church: bringing souls to Christ through proclaiming the gospel, perfecting the Saints, and redeeming the dead.

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Council members aren’t allowed to forget the importance of their individual influence and example.

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Input is solicited from everyone, but final decisions are left to the council leader, who relies upon inspiration more than personal opinion in guiding decisions of the council.

[Counseling with our Councils, 165, 168.] I would like to share with you some tools you could use in effectively conducting council meetings. There are several ways you can manage the flow of discussion, elicit differing opinions, encourage more participation, and stimulate critical thinking among council members. The quality of your facilitation will determine the quality of your inputs that will result to quality outputs. It is essential that as a leader you know how to harness the power and synergy of your council.

Conducting Council Meetings

Facilitation Menu of Tools 1. PARAPHRASE what a participant has said so that he or she feels understood

and so that other participants can hear a concise summary of what has been said. “What you are saying is that we must be careful in giving speaking assignments to new members and ensure they are first taught how speak in public. You also suggest that we hold a quarterly speaking workshop in the ward.” 2. CHECK your understanding of a participant’s statement or ask the participant to clarify what he or she is saying. “I am not sure what you mean by it. Would you like to explain that to us?” 3. COMPLIMENT an interesting and insightful comment. “That’s a very good point. I am really glad that you brought that to our attention.” 4. ELABORATE on a participant’s contribution to the discussion with examples, or suggest a new way to look at a problem. “I think what he means is that many people have never had the chance to speak in public until they become members of the church. I think it’s useful to look at it from a new member’s perspective.” 5. ENERGIZE the discussion by quickening the pace, using humor, or if necessary prodding the group for more contributions. “I remember a story of someone who wrote down his testimony on paper so that he might not forget what to say. When he stood up at the pulpit, it suddenly dawned on him that he could not find the paper so he told the congregation: “I’m sorry brothers and sisters, I just lost my testimony.” (Pause) Well, let’s hear from the others now and see what else they can tell us. I would like to hear from the ones who have not spoken yet.” 6. DISAGREE gently with a participant’s comments to stimulate further discussion. “I can see where you are coming from, but I am not sure if that concern applies to all members in the ward. Has anyone encountered something different than what Sis. Mendoza has mentioned?” 7. MEDIATE differences of opinion between participants and relieve any tensions that might be brewing. “ I think that Bro. de los Reyes and Sis. Mendoza are not really disagreeing with each other but just see two different sides of the issue.” 8. PULL TOGETHER ideas, showing their relationship to each other. “So the boys should be appropriately attired to pass the sacrament and that the deacon’s quorum president will be reminding those who will pass the sacrament on Saturday evenings to ensure it happens. I like that idea.” 9. CHANGE the group process by altering the method of obtaining participation or by having the group evaluate the ideas. “Since some of you are still not sure what you think about this issue, why don’t we break into dyads (partners) and discuss it that way. After you have discussed it together, tell us what you talked about.” 10. SUMMARIZE (and record) the major views of the group. “I have noted four ideas that have come as a result of our discussion (a) children should be seated with their parents during sacrament service (b) priesthood holders should be appropriately attired to administer the sacrament (c) a quarterly speakers’ training for all members especially for new members and (d) we will organize the ward choir to sing special musical selections to enhance the spirit of the sacrament service.” (Source: 10 Tips for Facilitating Discussions by Mel Silberman and Karen Lawson. The scripted examples are mine)

Conducting Council Meetings

APPLYING THE FACILITATION TOOLS Here’s an actual scenario during council meetings where you can utilize the facilitation tips. The tips can be used in all kinds of discussion. Let’s use the ward council meeting as an example. Bishop: “Thank you for attending our monthly ward council meeting. Thank you, Ben, for that wonderful prayer. Before we go to our new agenda, I would just like to review with you action items we noted last ward council meeting. May I request Jun (ward executive secretary) to review the minutes for us?” (Review and follow-up) Bro. Ramirez: (Ward Executive Secretary) “Bishop I note only two action items. Bro. Vicente was assigned to initiate the Temple Preparation seminar and the other item was for Sis. Gutierrez to arrange babysitting with the young women for next week’s temple excursion. ” Bishop: “May I have a report on those two items please?” Bro. Vicente: “We have already identified the person to teach the class, Bishop. We will give you the name so he can be interviewed and sustained next Sunday. ” (Return and report) Sis. Gutierrez: “The Laurel class president has already given me the names of the young women volunteers. We will be conducting babysitting seminar during mutual night this Wednesday. We will be ready by Saturday’s temple excursion. ” (Return and report) Bishop: “Thank you very much for the work you have done. I really appreciate it. (Commendation) For our new agenda, I would like us to discuss “how we can improve the quality of our sacrament meetings.” Tell us what you observe needs to improve in the service and what recommendations you have in mind. Let’s ask Sister Ramos our Primary president to start the discussion for us. ” (Preview) Sis. Ramos: (Primary President) “Well Bishop, I notice that some of the children are running around and eating at the sacrament hall during the meeting. Is it possible if Sister Mendoza can take that up with the mothers in Relief Society meeting?” Bishop: “That’s a good point and thank you for bringing that to our attention.” (Compliment) Sis. Mendoza: (Relief Society President) “Yes, I have noticed that also. We’ve talked about it but I guess we need to remind the sisters again. I also notice that the children who run around are not seated with their parents. Do you think the conducting officer can remind parents just before the sacrament is administered?” Bishop: “I think that can be arranged to refer to it very briefly. Ed, you are conducting next week’s sacrament meeting, please take a note of that. ” (Assignment) Bro. Santos: (Elders Quorum President) “Lately I have observed that some of our boys are not appropriately attired when they pass the sacrament. I thought that we provided all these boys with white shirts and ties? Our elders can always substitute for the boys but I don’t think that would be teaching them responsibility. ” [Elder M. Russell Ballard has specifically asked us to seek the vital input of sisters in our council meetings. The sisters, he said, want to be heard and valued and want to make meaningful contributions…. In my personal experience, some of the most insightful opinions I have heard have come from the sisters. Let’s make sure we involve them.] Copyright © 2005 Randy F. Rubio All rights reserved “Being Anxiously Engaged in a Good Cause”

Conducting Council Meetings

Bro. David: (Young Men President) “I already talked to those boys and two of them just had their white shirt still in the laundry. We have discussed this with the deacon’s quorum president and they will correct it. They also said they will remind the boys assigned to pass the sacrament on Saturday evenings. ” Bishop: “So the boys should be appropriately attired to pass the sacrament and that the deacon’s quorum president will be reminding those who will pass the sacrament on Saturday evenings to ensure it happens. I like that idea. ” (Pulling together and complimenting) Bro. de los Reyes: (Ward Mission Leader) “Bishop, we have been assigning new members lately to speak at the sacrament service. I think we ought to be careful giving them such an assignment without the benefit of training. I think they ought to receive training first. Maybe we can have the activities committee chairman arrange a communication skills workshop quarterly. ” Bishop: “What you are saying is that we must be careful in giving speaking assignments to new members and ensure they are first taught how to speak in public. You also suggest that we hold a quarterly speaking workshop in the ward.” (Paraphrasing) (Now talking to the group) “I think what he means is that many people have never had the chance to speak in public until they become members of the church. I think it’s useful to look at it from a new member’s perspective.” (Elaborating) “What do you think Paul?” (Checking) Bro. Cruz: (Ward Activities Committee Chairman) “I can do that. And I would like to add that this should also be attended by all the ward members not just new converts. ” Sis. Mendoza: “I just don’t think anybody can just speak at the sacrament meeting.” Bishop: “I am not sure what you mean by it. Would you like to explain that to us?” (Checking) Sis. Mendoza: “It takes somewhat of an expertise to speak in public. I just think we ought to be more careful in assigning the speakers. Once they have reached the level of a professional, only then should s/he be given the opportunity to speak.” Bishop: “I can see where you are coming from, but I am not sure if that concern applies to all members in the ward. Has anyone encountered something different than what Sis. Mendoza has mentioned?” (Disagreeing gently) Bro. de los Reyes: “I believe every member has the right to speak in the pulpit eventually. If we have to wait for professional speakers in the ward then that means we won’t have sacrament speakers at all. ” Sis. Mendoza: “Some of our speakers are just so embarrassing and we have visitors who come to our service.” Bishop: “I think that Bro. de los Reyes and Sis. Mendoza are not really disagreeing with each other but just see two different sides of the issue. What we can do is to create training opportunities for all our members and choose our speakers from the ones who have acceptable speaking abilities. (Mediating) You know it’s really hard to be an effective speaker. ” “I remember a story of someone who wrote down his testimony on paper so that he might not forget what to say. When he stood up at the pulpit, it suddenly dawned on him that he could not find the paper so he told the congregation: “I’m sorry brothers and sisters, I just lost my testimony.” (Energize and break the tension) (Pause) Well, let’s hear from the others now and see what else they can tell us. I would like to hear from the ones who have not yet spoken. ” (If you notice that some are still reluctant to contribute, change the process.) “Since some of you are still not sure what you think about this issue, why don’t we break into dyads (partners) and discuss it that way. After you have discussed it together, tell us what you talked about. ” (Change) Copyright © 2005 Randy F. Rubio All rights reserved “Being Anxiously Engaged in a Good Cause”

Conducting Council Meetings

Bro. Vicente: (Sunday School President) “It would be nice if we can organize a ward choir who can sing special musical selections during the service. Or may be even solos, duets, trios, quartets, or family choirs. ” Sis. Reyes: (Young Women President) “Music has such a special effect and even a hymn sung by a soloist can really touch our hearts. I think we should really have a ward choir organized. I volunteer myself, my husband, and my two children. ” Bishop: “I have noted four ideas that have come as a result of our discussion (a) children should be seated with their parents during sacrament service (b) priesthood holders should be appropriately attired to administer the sacrament (c) a quarterly speakers training for all members especially for new members and (d) we will organize the ward choir to sing special musical selections to enhance the spirit of the sacrament service.” (Summarize) Another option is to have the council members help you summarize: “Well, who can help me summarize the ideas contributed so far to improve our sacrament meeting? Yes that’s right. It has been suggested that we hold a quarterly speaking workshop. We also talked about talking to the mothers on having their little children seated with them. Anyone else remember the other ideas?” Your purpose is to make sure that the council members recall the ideas and have ownership over them. Then you can finally consolidate the agreements and pinpoint responsibility. Review the assignments in the next meeting and ask for a report. “The assignment to talk to the mothers has been given to Sister Mendoza. The bishopric will make the reminder briefly for children to be seated with their parents. Bro. David will ensure that our boys will wear proper attire when passing the sacrament with the help of the deacon’s quorum president. Bro. Cruz will initiate the quarterly speaking workshop. I will be the first to sign-up since I am the most terrible speaker in the ward (Humor). We will also organize the ward choir. Sis. Reyes has volunteered her family to join the choir and I have no objection since they have auditioned for the Mormon Tabernacle choir (Humor). I will take the responsibility of calling the ward music chairman by next Sunday. (Delegation) If the ward clerk can take those assignments down so we can review them next meeting and request for your report. ” (Record) “Thank you, brothers and sisters, for your presence and your ideas.”

In Exceptional Situations – Handling dominant participants. “I can see that Bro. Cruz has still more things to say. Before we hear from him again, I would like to ask others to share their opinions.” Or “I would like to go around first with everybody and then hear what Bro. Cruz has to say.” Breaking into a participant who is speaking too long. You can interrupt gently. “Thank you for your comments and (not the word but) let’s hear what others have to say about this topic.” “I really appreciate your comments and would like now to hear what others think about this problem.” When a participant breaks into an outburst. In the unlikely event that a council member breaks into an outburst, you can respond by allowing the person to express his/her feelings. Do not attempt to counter, argue, defend or take sides. In such case, you may use active listening. (a) take the outburst as a positive contribution (smile, encourage, nod) (b) successively reflect back to the participant (in the form of questions) what feelings you heard expressed. “You seem upset with the litter of paper you found in the nursery room, is that right?” “You are unhappy about the absence of youth leaders during last night’s activity. I would feel the same way if I were in your situation” “You feel that we should reduce our ward activities? You seem to have a point. I would like to hear why you think that way.” “Let’s listen to what Sis. Caburnay has to say. It means a lot to her. Please proceed Sister.” Copyright © 2005 Randy F. Rubio All rights reserved “Being Anxiously Engaged in a Good Cause”

Conducting Council Meetings

You do not need to use all of these tools in one meeting nor will you be able to learn them all at once. My suggestion is to review this script prior and after every council meeting you hold. It will remind you how to apply the techniques and your awareness of their application will increase. As you begin to apply them, you will feel in control of these meetings. As the meetings become more efficient and productive, you will be able to implement programs and effect changes quickly. Finally, let me provide some illustration on how the council can apply specific suggestions made by Elder M. Russell Ballard for more effective councils. Focusing on fundamentals. While there are many topics that could be tackled by the council, they are not of equal importance. He has counseled us to go to the basics. Here are some topics I think fit into this category. How to Improve Sacrament Meeting How to Teach the Gospel Culture How to Retain New Members Teaching Members Family History Improving Quality Teaching Preparing Youth for Missions Maintaining Meetinghouse Cleanliness Increasing Church Magazine Subscriptions

Encouraging Families to Hold FHE, Prayer & Scripture Study Implementing Effective Reactivation Efforts How to Implement the Youth Program Increasing Temple Attendance Performing Home and Visiting Teaching Effectively Improving the Quality of Baptismal Service Increasing Member Referrals for Missionaries How to Increase Seminary enrolment

Focus on people. Many council meetings are being held to receive reports from auxiliaries or calendaring of activities. The reports from auxiliaries are best discussed during bishopric monthly interview with auxiliary presidents and calendaring during presidency meetings. To focus on people is to discuss how needs of individuals and families can be addressed. Of course, the information should be confidential. Here’s an example: “Let’s discuss the situation of the De la Cruz family. Sister de la Cruz will soon be having a new baby and her husband is still unemployed up to this time. Their two teen-age children are out of school and have not been to youth activities for some time. Do you have any ideas how we can help this family in any way?” “I have recently observed that our returned missionaries are loosening up on church standards and do not quite live up to their role as role models for our young people. What can we do to re-energize our returned missionaries?” Participation is a privilege. Council meetings offer us the opportunity to openly express our ideas and sometimes even our disagreements on a variety of issues. It is indeed a privilege to be given such an opportunity and therefore also demands responsibility from the leader and its members. The council members are required to share and even advocate what they strongly feel about. From the leader, the direction of the flow of the discussion, allowing everyone equal opportunities to be heard, and to listen actively (not just pretending to be listening and interested) for inputs. After carefully considering the council members’ opinions, leaders are then responsible for making the final decision. When a final decision is made by the leader, it becomes the responsibility of the council members to support it wholeheartedly even if they do not fully agree to the decision. “After weighing all the pros and cons of the issue, the bishopric has decided to cancel the ward youth conference for the following reasons…… I know that you don’t all agree and we have heard your strong opinions on this matter. Therefore, I ask you to sustain this decision regardless of how we feel for or against it.” “Well, I sustain the bishop in his decision but I still don’t agree on canceling the ward youth conference.” This attitude especially when disclosed to others undermines the decision of the council and its leaders. Even when we don’t agree, we must show our confidence and perhaps even our enthusiasm on the wisdom of the council’s decision. We have no right to speak against the council’s decision to other people. As the Lord said, “… if ye are not one, ye are not mine.” (D&C 38:27) Copyright © 2005 Randy F. Rubio All rights reserved “Being Anxiously Engaged in a Good Cause”

Conducting Council Meetings

OBSERVER’S FEEDBACK I want to know what I do well as a facilitator of meetings. I also want to know what else I can do to improve. Please rate my actual facilitation performance in the following categories using this rating scale: 1 – 3 Beginner

4 – 6 Good

7 – 9 Very Good

10 – Professional

Facilitation Basics Topic Preview Room Preparation

[________] [________]

Start on Time Summary

[________] [________]

End on Time Delegation

My Body Language Eye Contact Facial Expression

[________] [________]

Posture Dress & Appearance

[________] [________]

Hand Gestures [________] Voice & Vocal Variety [________]

[________] [________]

My Facilitation Skills (To the observer: Please review the “Facilitation Menu of Tools” and kindly indicate in the blanks below the instances where I have successfully utilized them as a facilitator. Write the words and phrases I used.) Give me an example where I paraphrased ________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I checked ___________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I complimented ______________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I elaborated _________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I energized __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I disagreed gently ____________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I mediated __________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I pulled together ______________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I changed the group process ____________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Give me an example where I summarized ________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Your other comments________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________ Name: _____________________________ Date of Meeting: ____________ Observer:___________________________ Copyright © 2005 Randy F. Rubio All rights reserved “Being Anxiously Engaged in a Good Cause”