Meetings Bolivia Style
I was in La Paz this past weekend to participate in a series of meetings with a group of pastors who have churches in the city centre. My own church (Weston Park Baptist) has entered into a 3 year agreement with these churches to help support them in a variety of causes. The purposes of the meeting were to meet the players and to iron out some of the details of the agreement.
What was fun was how the meeting proceeded! We met in a restaurant on the Prado during the world cup final between Spain and Holland. The pastors were all keen football fans so this event added to the excitement of the meeting. Before the meeting started we ate trout (trucha) which was caught in Lake Titikaka—quite tasty by the way! After several courses including salad, soup, trout, desert and coffee—2 hours in all we finally started the meeting!
We talked about the specifics of the project focusing on the desire for a ’social needs’ aspect of the effort. The pastors were in agreement for this new directive but needed more time to decide what the project would encompass. This discussion lasted for 2 more hours—total 4 hours!
A few things impressed me about this gathering: 1. A bit distracting but a great idea to hold it during the world cup final (hooray for Espana due to my Bolivian sympathies)! 2. Holding a meeting over supper made for a casual and informal discussion (no wine but the expressos were reasonable). 3. The meeting was considerably longer than the North American equivalents but the results were significant. It struck me that our commitment to efficiency, short meetings, and a utilitarian approach (which seeks clear strategies) does not always create the best scenario for the softer side of design/project management to occur.
So let’s hear it for human connection! Meetings over meals! Less rush! Effective listening!—and of course the sound of gooooooal in the background (which only the Spanish announcers do properly!) reminding us that our projects happen in the real world where real people live. In other words let’s stay grounded, make a difference and do it in a manner which supports each other’s God given humanity!
