The Ideal Workday
The Conscious Conversation Framework
Purpose
A frequent challenge of entrepreneurial leaders is earning buy-in and a sense of ownership toward business outcomes. Leaders may believe they must set strategy or make decisions alone, thus left convincing others of their viewpoints.
This lesson walks through our Conscious Conversation Framework, designed to help you facilitate conversation with your team, elicit the best ideas, and make a decision to move forward collectively, with buy-in and trust at the center.
What is the Conscious Conversation Framework for?
This framework can be used to:
The big idea: You act as both leader and facilitator to work with your team and collectively make decisions.
What topic will you choose? The following slides will use Setting Goals as an example topic.
Our sample agenda
Use our agenda during your conversation as a personal playbook to facilitate team outcomes.
The Conscious Conversation Framework
Set Expectations In Advance
How can we prepare our teams to set goals together?
📚 Share reference material on the power of goal-setting.
✉️ Ask participants to individually answer the question “What are the most important goals for our team right now?”
🙋♂️ Communicate why this is an important exercise, and why now
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Exercise
Individually answer the question
Discuss
⏰ Set a time interval for the goal
What time interval will you choose?
Write in Zoom chat—don’t hit enter!
Exercise
Individually answer the question
Write your answers:
Type in the Zoom chat.
Set Intentions and Outcomes
How can we focus this meeting?
🙌 Ask: “What should our goal for today be?”
🎯 Ask: “What agenda items should we be discussing?”
✋ Ask: “What should we NOT focus on today?”
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Exercise
Individually answer the question
Discuss
📄 Set clear outcomes and agenda
Draft an agenda outline for the conversation.
Add timestamps.
Decide How To Decide
How can we make a decision (even a difficult or conflicting one)?
🦖 Autocratic: “I alone decide.”
🦍 Consultative: “I gather input, then I decide.”
🦮 Consensus: “Everyone must agree unanimously.”
🐝 Delegative: “Someone else decides.”
🦉 Democratic: “Majority rules.”
🐈 Stochastic: “Flip a coin.”
🐿 Avoidant: “Let’s postpone or not decide.”
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Exercise
Individually answer the question
What decision process might you choose?
Type in the Zoom chat.
Awareness Phase: Share Thoughts, Feelings, and Data
How can we anticipate areas of tension?
📊 Review any information prepared in advance (this is the Goal Design Template)
💬 Share your authentic thoughts and feelings about this conversation
❓ Ask others to share their authentic thoughts and feelings about this conversation
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Exercise
Individually reflect on the question
Breakout into groups
Regroup and debrief
Write your answer to the question:
Breakout into small groups. Share answers.
Return and debrief.
Alignment Phase: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
How can we co-create the result with the team?
✋ Allow each team member to share their opinions or draft goals
🪨 Point out patterns and themes—areas we agree AND disagree
🧁 Open a new Goal Design Template and draft the completed goal together
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Action Phase: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
How can we put into action (not just a “nice discussion”)?
⏰ Plan in advance for time to run out
🏀 Find “good enough” goals and decide as a team to pursue them (using decision-making process)
✅ Assign action items (could be to hold another review meeting)
📜 Collect feedback: how did we do as a team?
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Share Gratitude
How can we conclude the meeting in a positive light—regardless of what we achieved?
👉 Point out the progress the team has made together today
💭 Ask: “What’s one intention you wish to carry forward in this work?”
✍️ Exercise: “Write down, then share, one expression of gratitude to the person on your left.”
Set Expectations in Advance
Set Intentions and Outcomes
Decide How To Decide
Awareness: Thoughts, Feelings, Data
Alignment: Individual Perspectives, Group Discussion, Commit to Draft, Decide
Action: Commit to Action Items, Collect Feedback
Share Gratitude
Appendix
The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership: A New Paradigm for Sustainable Success by Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman, and Kaley Klemp
The Essential Common Ground For Highly Effective Teamwork by Stefano Mastrogiacomo
The Coaching Habit: Say Less, Ask More & Change the Way You Lead Forever by Michael Bungay Stanier