Do You Give Good Meeting?

Does your organization get the most out of its meetings and interactions with elected officials? We here at the Art of Politics have sat through MANY, MANY, MANY, MANY meetings with elected officials, on both sides of the table. Why?  Because we LOVE sitting at the table with elected officials and their staff.  Seriously.  We love it.  We are giddy after a well-planned, well-executed meeting.

You should ask yourself: Does my company/organization give good meeting?  Your request for an appointment will get extra attention if your answer is 'yes', meaning the impact of giving good meeting is exponential.

TOP THREE RULES FOR GIVING GOOD MEETING

1. Don't just make an appointment to make an appointment. The elected official has about 20 requests for one hour of their time. Make the appointment worth their while and yours by crafting the content of your meeting around at least one specific goal/request .  You should make your goal attainable, specific and compelling.

2. Don't make a shopping list!  Givers of good meeting only make one or two requests at most.  It is very tempting to shower an elected official with all kinds of requests, but those who get the most out of a meeting are laser focused on one or two specific, tangible, understandable outcomes. 

3. Lay the groundwork.  If your request is technical or complicated, or you've never met with this particular elected official before, have a 'pre-meet' with staff to explain your request.  If the staff person can't explain what you want in 30 seconds to their employer prior to your meeting with the elected official, you don't give good meeting.

Want to see '4' through '20'?   E-mail us at: artofpolitics at mac dot com