Four Simple Prep Steps to Make Every Meeting a Win-Win

Posted on August 17th, 2010 by Keith Ferrazzi

Here’s a great framework to prepare yourself for a meeting, courtesy of RMA Coach Cindy Cornell’s awesome master class.

As you prep for a meeting, answer the questions below – in writing:

1. What do I want the other person to know?
Make sure you’re offering a clear, concise picture, with all the details needed to understand your idea/product/service.

2.    What do I want them to believe?
What are the benefits? Have you done enough research to know what their problems are, and to deliver your solution in their language?

3.    How do I want them to feel?
Invest them emotionally and you’ve won. What stories can you tell that help the person connect to your and your cause on a deeper level?

4.    What do I want them to do?
Make your ask clear – and make sure it’s something easy to say yes to. No one likes to be rushed, so be prepared to move incrementally toward your goal.

To answer the questions above successfully, you’ll have to DO YOUR HOMEWORK and really put yourself in your target’s shoes – how are you going to walk in there and be uniquely generous? It’s not hard to be persuasive when you know for sure that what you’re offering is truly a win-win.

Remember though, once you get into the room, your job isn’t to orate. It’s to be fully present, pay attention – and be FULLY prepared to adapt, amend, or even toss out all that prep depending on what you learn in real-time.

How do you prepare yourself for a meeting?

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18 Responses so far | Have Your Say!

  1. .5 What information do I want to get from this meeting?
    I always included that item on my agenda - it reduces the number of times I have to kick myself for not asking critical questions.

    I think the 4 points above will make a big impact on my presentations if only by making me stop and think before each meeting, rather than going on automatic.

    Thanks Keith!

  2. These points, plus 5 above, are great for job interviewers as well.

  3. Diane Fennig says:
    August 17, 2010 at 5:26 am
    Reply

    I have always found a follow-up e-mail starting with a genuine thank you for their time and attention, including a re-cap of the meeting, and a gentle reminder of the next steps needed as a great strategy.

  4. Extremely helpful!!! Thank you Keith and Cindy for these wonderful tips. It's important to be PRESENT at meetings and to be fully prepared.

  5. Amen to your #5, Brian (and Keith's #4). I am kicking myself for just such a thing right now! The meeting ended without a clear recap of next steps, and I'm left wondering if the person is actually following up on the things I *think* she said she'd do!

  6. Thank you for the 4 thought-provoking prep questions. Very stimulating. I agree with Brian McGovern in Comments above. 5. Should be: What information do I want from this meeting? Which implies a related prep question: What questions do I want to or need to ask?

  7. Thank you for the wonderful prep questions listed thus far by everyone. I am heading into such a meeting tomorrow. Here is another question to add to our list: "How well do I know the company? How would I describe the company to someone else?" I usually review and understand the company's entire website. Being able to articulate the company's Mission, Vision, #employees, locations, executive team members, etc. is probably a given for all of us reading this blog. Just thought I'd add it to our list.

  8. All of these are great tips. Remember that these tips are relevant not only for client and vendor type meetings but also for something as small and somewhat informal as a weekly team meeting. Keep the great ideas coming!

  9. Two more:

    1 - Turn the cell phone/blackberry/palm pilot/MP3 player off (or at least put on silent) - if you want to blow a meeting just let the other person conclude you have better things to do than focus on her or him.

    2 - Be honest - I finally had a meeting this morning after 9 months of posturing - and almost the first thing I did was explain why we aren't the firm to deliver the services the potential client currently needs - hopefully this establishes trust, lends credibility to my statements about what we can do, and will lead to opportunities down the road -but either way there is no sense (to me anyway) in pretending you can deliver what you can not - if you get an opportunity and blow it you will never get a second chance.

    And thanks to Diane - I'm going to calender to send a thank you/follow up email for about a week from now.

  10. Wonderful suggestions! In addition, if it's a public company I review the financial statements to identify where the company is investing its energy. All things being equal, the departments with the largest budgets have the most influence to get things done: Is it engineering? Did the money move from engineering to sales and marketing in the last year etc...It gives a quick read of what's going on in the organization.

  11. Before I attend any meeting I will ask myself this question: Do I really need to attend this meeting?

    Good idea on the 04 questions. Give some kind of structure that can be very helpful.

  12. In addition to the excellent suggestions already made. Always finish with a recap of agreed actions. This prevents any disconnect with what has been heard and what has been said. The actions should include a timeframe for completion of agreed tasks or the time for the next discussion.

  13. I am so glad that you've all found my suggestions helpful! You're right... they can be used for just about any meeting - from a complicated business negotiation to a job interview to a 30 second chat with an aspirational new contact in an elevator. Be intentional about every meeting you have and you'll be quickly on your way to achieving WILD SUCCESS! Warmly, Cindy

  14. Since I work with a group of people that are required to pay attention to detail, I've been "trained" to anticipte the types of questions that will be asked. As a result, I find myself better prepared for questions. If I did not anticipate a question that comes my way, I don't pretend to know. I simply say something to the effect of "good point, I'm glad we had this meeting, I had not thought of that in those terms. I will find out and get back to the group." In turn I try to put myself on the recieving end of the information that I am about to give. Putting myself on the recieving end helps me identify gaps in my presentation.

  15. Four very good questions. Add "Have I anticipated questins that will be asked of me?" This may involve preparation of material that may not be on the agenda, but you will look good by minimizing the "I'll get back to you" factor. It all begins by knowing your audience and thinking like them in advance.

  16. Another good article you got here props. Check out http://www.realmp3s.info when you get the time.

  17. this is the second time i read the site, good post as always! all the best, Resan

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