Maintaining focus

- So what I mean when I say maintaining focus … is that when we are advocating for change in our companies, … we need to make sure that we're focusing on the things … that are most important. … And in order to determine what's most important, … we need to first take the time to prepare. … We need to ask ourselves what's important … to discuss right now, and what are the things … that we should ignore, … and then that can lead you to the creation … of an effective agenda. … And when you're creating that agenda, … you send it to the other side … and make sure that we're on the same page. … Then what we're doing is once we start to get off topic, … we redirect the conversation by asking … a great open-ended question that is on topic. … Now it's important to do this in a way … that doesn't seem dismissive, … because even though it might not be important … for what you're hoping to accomplish in the conversation, … it might be important for them to address. … So we need to make it clear that we've heard them, …