| THE SHARED POOL OF MEANING | | | | |
| | | | Let's think of this with a planned board |
| A skilled professional will find a way to get | | | | meeting. Whoever makes the decision will |
| all of the free flow of relevant information | | | | benefit by having the most information |
| out into the open, It's the principle of the | | | | available. We aren't saying we want a |
| "Shared Pool of Meaning". This is the | | | | consensus opinion, or that the president |
| synergistic pool of ideas and feelings of the | | | | doesn't make the final decision. As a matter |
| entire group | | | | of fact, a good idea is to state up front |
| | | | that there will be 2 phases to the |
| Getting ideas into the "pool" have 3 major | | | | conversation. First, a Discussion or Dialogue |
| benefits: | | | | phase where all of the ideas are added to the |
| | | | pool of meaning. Second, after all ideas are |
| 1. The larger the Pool, the better the | | | | shared, discussion is shut off and the |
| decisions. | | | | Decision phase begins with decisions made by |
| | | | whoever is in charge. |
| 2. The time you spend up front is more than | | | | |
| made up by faster, more committed action | | | | Using these skills will make you a better |
| later on. An extra 20 minutes spent drawing | | | | communicator and leader in the Multi-Housing |
| thoughts out of reluctant individuals might | | | | community. It will give you insights into |
| save hundreds of hours over the next few | | | | others that you never would have received any |
| years. | | | | other way. It will help you to listen and |
| | | | respect others in ways that 99% of the rest |
| 3. People who don't get their ideas into the | | | | of the population never truly understands. |
| pool are rarely committed to the solution & | | | | |
| silently criticize the decisions. People that | | | | This article written by Steve Hoogenakker |
| have at least a small part of the decision | | | | Steve has 20 years in the landscaping field. |
| will work harder to make it succeed. | | | | |