WHAT WE LEARNED:

Someone’s tone, nonverbal signals, and body language are just as important as what they may say or do. Silence speaks volumes and doesn’t always indicate agreement or disagreement. Someone who is quiet in a meeting may be confused about the discussion, overwhelmed by personal issues, or simply listening to glean information without much participation. We learned there are lots of insights in listening and watching how people engage and show up in discussions. Being aware and watchful of the many ways your collaborators are communicating with your group is a practice for everyone to use, though if you have a designated discussion facilitator, they can play a critical role in highlighting and bringing out what others might miss or disregard.

PRACTICE EXERCISES

In the next neighborhood meeting, watch people’s body language, when they seem to perk up, become distracted, or disengage. Where do you notice tension? Where does there appear to be agreement or harmony? Do you notice a pattern of reactions to certain topics, phrases, or speakers? In your personal meeting notes, try to jot down the non-verbal signs (example: Stacy and Doug were the only ones who didn’t say anything on this topic) so you can build up your own understanding of your group’s “language.”

WHAT WE LEARNED:

Making decisions together is probably one of the most important skills a resident-led group can develop. It’s also where residents may walk away from the effort if they don’t feel heard or don’t like the decisions being made. When a decision can affect hundreds or thousands of people in a neighborhood, making decisions that carefully represent the wants and needs of the residents can demonstrate collective power and resident leadership. A resident-led process will put new demands and strain on residents’ time and energy so it’s helpful to find ways to lessen that burden. Tools for making decisions efficiently is one way to help your group reach its goals with less strain.

It’s helpful to establish structures for how the group will discuss complex topics. For example, before a meeting that will require discussion on a multi-layered decision, you may want to break down the decision into smaller parts and distribute a brief survey for quick votes. With varying attendance at some of the meetings, we found it helpful to decide who is a part of the group willing to take ownership of making major decisions by defining a quorum. A quorum is a way to ensure important decision-makers are present before a discussion and decisions are made. It can consist of how many members are present, the percentage of meetings members must attend, or ensuring certain chairs or positions within the committee are present before going to a vote. Methods for group decision making include:

• Majority vote: when over half the people present agree, you have a majority vote. In this method, members of the group discuss a decision to be made, loosely identify a proposal, then vote on it.
• Surveying: This is similar to casting a vote, just in a written form instead of open discussion. Sometimes this format gives people more space and time to think without the pressure of needing to answer in a group setting. When sent in advance, it also saves time during the meeting where a decision needs to be made.
• “Consensus-based group decision making” is a process used by many institutions and organizations in which group members deliberately come to agreement on a decision. It involves introducing and clarifying the issue, discussion, forming a proposal and amending if necessary, then testing for agreement. The proposal process is repeated until all are in agreement. It leaves room for members to raise reservations or stand aside and refine the decision into something everyone can live with.

PRACTICE EXERCISES

Draw a consensus-based decision-making diagram 🔗 on a whiteboard or chart paper at your next meeting where you may have hard decisions to make as a group. Read the instructions and track the conversation. Make sticky notes with each member’s name and move them along so they can see where they are in the process of the group making a collective decision.

WHAT WE LEARNED:

Planning processes have many, many decision points. As other time commitments and obligations lead collaborators to weave in and out of the process, your group may find itself going in circles on issues you previously resolved. With so many decision points in what can be a multi-year process, it’s easy to forget what you’ve already discussed. When there is a record of what was considered and decided, you can ensure the conversation always moves forward, especially around hot-button issues. Having a record also allows your group to be reminded of what you’ve already considered and make an informed decision on whether to revisit an item.
Over time, we incorporated a few practices to help with developing a record and supporting the group in having forward-moving discussions that we’ve outlined here:

• Spreadsheet: This can be helpful when tracking attendance, voting privileges, and then who and how people voted on each topic. It’s useful to have a clear picture of where everyone stands and how aligned all members are on decisions.
• Tracking document: Similar to running notes, this document is updated after each meeting with notes on the discussion. To make note taking easier, copy and paste the group’s meeting agenda or discussion guide into a document so notes can follow the order of the discussion. For each agenda section, you can record the decisions that were made by listing them at the bottom of the section or creating a column just for decisions so you can see the discussion items and the decisions side-by-side: Link to template
• Meeting notes: These are created as simple documents made in a word processor (like Microsoft Word) to be easily downloaded and printed for note-taking or easier viewing. Always remember to include the date, who was present, and the topics discussed. Some residents like to keep printed copies in a binder to refer to later.
• Survey: Transform group decision-making with an online survey or printable questionnaire. These can be sent in advance to prepare attendees for discussion or as a follow-up to record attendees’ votes. The benefit for some is breathing room to think about the decisions to be made on their own time before they respond. Results can be shared out as a way to track why certain decisions were made.

Further still, sometimes a phone call is the best way for a collaborator to catch up on the latest decisions being made and offer their input. It helps to be flexible and find ways to meet everyone where they are so the progress of the group can continue.

PRACTICE EXERCISES

Designate someone from your group to record who attends each meeting. When something comes to a vote, record the proposed decision and results of the vote. To get started, download an attendance and voting template that you can use digitally or print.