The document provides guidance on how to effectively contribute and communicate during meetings. It outlines dos and don'ts such as listening actively, being diplomatic, staying on topic, and not monopolizing discussions. Useful phrases are presented for commenting on others' points, emphasizing importance, encouraging participation, indicating lack of understanding, asking questions, and promising follow up actions. The overall aim is providing strategies for respectful, productive discussions that move meetings towards successful outcomes.

1. Meetings: communicating
towards a successful outcome

2. Things to Consider before the
Meeting
• Which kind of language gets your opinion
across most effectively?
• Which kind of language will get you the best
possible results?

3. Contributing Effectively
Do Don’t
• obey the ground rules • monopolize the
• be positive discussion
• separate people from • become emotional
problems or too argumentative
• keep to the topic • make personal
criticisms

4. Contributing Effectively
Do Don’t
• use clear simple • digress
language • use long
• allow other to finish complicated
• ask for clarification if sentences
you don’t understand • Interrupt too much
• pretend you
understand

5. Contributing Effectively
To be able to contribute effectively you need
to:
• listen actively
• observe others
• be diplomatic
• be positive

6. Contributing Effectively
To be able to contribute effectively you need :
• useful phrases for making your point
• useful language for communicating towards a
successful outcome

7. Communicating towards a
Successful Outcome
• Comment on others’ points
• Say how important something is
• Say how interesting something is
• Say that something is surprising
• Encourage other participants
• Indicate lack of understanding
• Use questions effectively
• Promise action and state intention

8. Commenting on Others’
Points
When someone has expressed a point of
view, make a comment on what has been
said, if appropriate.
That’ s an important point.
It’ s only a minor point.
That’ s a good point.

9. Saying How Important
Something Is.
You can support others or back up your own
arguments by emphasizing the importance of
a point made.
It’ s/That’ s vital.
It’ s/That’ s crucial.
It’ s/That’ s imperative.
This is extremely important.

10. Saying How Interesting
Something Is.
You can encourage others by showing
interest.
It’ s/That’ s really interesting.
It’ s/That’ s extremely interesting.
What interests me about this is …
It’ s/That’ s very interesting because …

11. Encouraging Other
Participants
If people remain silent and do not give
opinions, ask them what they think. Silence
can mean agreement or disagreement. You
can help to move the meeting forward by
encouraging others to speak and by giving
others positive feedback.

12. Encouraging Other
Participants
Do you agree with this, John?
I like your ideas about …
You present the case very well.
You’ ve obviously looked into this thoroughly.
That was an excellent report.
Martin, what do you think about this?

13. Indicating Lack of
Understanding
If you do not understand what someone else
has said, you can use these phrases.
Could you say that again, please?
Sorry, I’ m not quite sure what you mean by
that.
Sorry?

14. Using Questions Effectively
Questions can help to move the meeting
forward and help to clarify your understanding
of others’ points of view. It is worth
considering in advance the types of questions
you might need to ask.
Do we all agree that …?
So are we all happy with that?

15. Using Questions Effectively
It’s also important to encourage discussion by
asking open-ended questions
What do you think of this idea?
What are the implications of this for … ?
Could you tell us something about … ?
What are your views on … ?

16. Using Questions Effectively
These questions can be used to gain
information.
How big is this going to be?
What effect would that have?
Why is it important to do that?

17. Positive Questions
Be sure that you ask positive questions.
Don’t say:
Is it possible to achieve this?
Say:
How can we achieve this?

18. Using Questions Effectively
These questions can be used to ask for
conformation.
So, what you’ re saying is … ?
Are you saying …?
Do you mean to say that … ?

19. Using Questions Effectively
These questions can be used to close down a
discussion.
Is this the course of action that your prefer?
Have we dealt with that point?
Is that agreed?

20. Promising Action and Stating
Intension
Say what you intend to do as a result of the
meeting by using these phrases.
I’ ll …
I’ ll do that if you like.

21. Questions?
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