To keep a group focused and productive, you must employ effective listening skills (Chapter 6). You might think that leaders should talk more than listen, but without informational, critical, and empathic listening skills, they miss opportunities to learn new information from others or to analyze ideas that might help the group achieve goals.
When running a meeting, it’s crucial that the leader has done the preparation we described previously. As the leader, if you’ve planned properly, you are fully aware of your goals for the meeting and familiar with all the background information you’ll need. If you can’t articulate a goal for the meeting, you probably shouldn’t call the meeting at all (Business Week, 2005).