Meetings

It's easy to let the DAO mindset of listening to all voices be justification for letting meetings meander. Meetings should have an agenda, clear goals, recorded action items, and a designated lead who keeps it on track. To keep it less hierarchical, people can rotate through leading. Some people enjoy the role and are particularly well-suited to keeping the conversation on track, which sometimes requires being assertive and cutting people off. A good meeting lead can work wonders and make meetings more enjoyable for all attendees.

While following the framework exactly can turn your DAO into a bureaucracy to rival Congress, Robert's Rules of Order can provide a framework running meetings. It offers a system for tracking meeting agenda items, recording minutes, making sure many voices are acknowledged, and making decisions. For example, Robert's Rules provides a protocol for limiting speaking time and alternating between differing perspectives which can come in handy during a heated debate.

While some see them as a time-drain, meetings should be seen as a tool that creates momentum for the DAO and projects. Most DAOs will at least have a Community Call, an open-invite meeting each week where core contributors can share updates and more casual contributors and curious outsiders can listen on on the latest happenings. Other than the Community Call, team or project leads can schedule and run meetings at their own discretion.

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