Resource section Hands Up!
.” “I WISH TO SPEAK
- A HANDY way to get through meetings more quickly Should the Cabinet look at this? Should your community group or board? With more meetings and less time, here’s ways to get through committee meetings more effectively! Advisory note: Boards that take themselves seriously, and particularly large boards, should be the first to consider adopting ‘hand-signals’ in committee meetings. Don’t be put off by the fact that it seems like fun or because one person objects. With practice and patience, this can be a winning formula.
The top 3 time-saving hand-signals:
“SPEAK UP!”
“I AGREE / GOOD IDEA!” This is a really useful signal which can save hours of repetitive agreement if used frequently.
1. The “I Agree / Good Idea” handroll. 2. The “Hurry Up!” hand signal gets a message across without interrupting the speaker. Best directed at the chairperson if the speaker isn’t facing your way. 3. “I’ve a Direct Reply”. Note: The character depicted in this photoplay is fictitious and any similarity to actual living persons is purely coincidental.
“MOVE ON!” If you think the discussion is going around in circles and that consensus has been reached.
“I’VE A DIRECT REPLY.” If you want to make a direct reply to the current speaker you can use this to jump the cue – otherwise by the time it is your turn the discussion will probably have moved on. Should only be used when necessary.
“LANGUAGE TRANSLATION PLEASE!” Request for a translation.
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“HERE’S A TECHNICAL POINT.” A short point of information. Eg “The bus actually leaves at 8, not at 9.” The facilitator/chairperson will usually interrupt the current speaker to allow you speak. A technical point should never be an opinion and should only be used when strictly necessary.
“I’M CONFUSED!”
“I can’t accept that”. The discussion would then restart from the basis of your objections. Almost never used.