Building Shared Meaning

Roger Schwartz (2002) who I used as a source in last months ezine, suggests that a guideline for successful meetings is to take the time to build shared meaning.

If any of you have ever built or remodeled a home, the two things you know for sure is that building always takes more time than you think it will and it always costs more money. Building shared meaning is a similar process. It always takes more time than “it should” and it always requires more resources than you expect.

I recently facilitated a day-long meeting for a task force that was working to implement a major change initiative in an organization. A part of the change vision spoke about creating a safe environment. When the group explored what safety meant however (building shared meaning), there was a wide spectrum of interpretations. For some it meant physical safety, for others emotional; for some it meant giving clear honest feedback and for others it meant avoiding honest feedback if it could in any way be heard as criticism; for some it meant having more control and for others it meant accepting the fact that their control was an illusion. Getting clear on what “safety” meant took more time than expected but it was a critical step to the group moving forward together.

While you might assume that everyone knows what certain words mean, it is much more effective in the long run to take the time to build shared meaning in the short run.

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