Why You Need to Speak Up at Meetings

So you’re apprehensive about speaking up at meetings? I was too. Even though I never saw myself as particularly shy, I was apprehensive about speaking at team meetings early in my corporate job. 

I felt that I had nothing to contribute, and I certainly did not want to say something that would sound foolish in front of the entire team. What if my question was an obvious one? What if my comment was unclear and seemed stupid to even one team member? What if I'm just supposed to listen in this meeting? I did not have a good answer, so that last question always brought on the bigger questions: What is my role in this meeting? What if my boss expects me to contribute and take ownership?

Because of this inner turmoil, I generally dreaded team meetings. This was the case for a good two years before I signed on with my mentor, a senior director from another department who had watched me since I arrived at the company. 

My mentor explained the importance of speaking up at meetings, communicating my thoughts, and stating my questions without doubt or shame. 

So, why bother speaking up at meetings? 

Because your management, she explained, needs to see you taking initiative and showing signs of leadership. If you stay quiet at team meetings, it can be construed as lack of interest, lack of attention, and lack of focus. 

So speaking up at meetings is not just an exercise in communication and interaction skills, it helps advance your career if you do it right. On that note, here are three tips to help you get the right level of engagement:

Always know your role in the meeting by asking your boss in advance. Then prepare according to that role for the meeting.
Always arrive early and speak to other team members. Ask how you can help and be helpful to them before the meeting even starts.
Listen well and ask helpful questions. Make offers to help your team members whenever appropriate in the conversation.

In summary, even if you are shy, you have much to contribute and for others to know this, you need to speak up. Pay attention at team meetings, stay engaged in the conversation even if you contribute at your own comfortable pace, and clarify your understanding of final decision points and commitment to action before the meeting is adjourned. 

Take it from an ex-corporate gal who climbed the ladder before jumping out of the corporate race: Your future career opportunities will appear much sooner and easier if you stick to these guidelines.

-Farnoosh Brock, Business and Career Coach, Prolific Living Inc.