Minute Writing Skills Course

Minute writing skills training open courses in Manchester, Birmingham, Gloucester, Milton Keynes, Swindon, Oxford, London, Nottingham, Taunton, West Midlands, Edinburgh – Scotland

Open course as follows:

Oxford, Oxfordshire 26th April

Open Course: £275 +VAT per delegate day

Minute writing is an important but difficult skill.

 Minutes are “a written document that accurately and objectively records the essence of a meeting.”

The skills of minute writing fall under three main headings:

1. Making good initial notes, in the meeting, when everyone is talking at once.
2. Converting the initial notes into a finished document that is brief, accurate and clear.
3. Before the next meeting, distributing the minutes to all the relevant people.

Of the three listed above, it is the first that is the most difficult.

Making good initial notes, in the meeting: if you can do that well, everything else follows on. If your initial notes are bad: everything else will be equally bad.

This course is designed to help you to take accurate notes so that you can create accurate minutes. The content of the course covers:

Here is an outline of the minutes writing course:

Why it is important to take good minutes
Two listening methods:

1. The pan sifter: who is selective listener. This is the right way.
2. The sponge: who tries to record everything. This is the wrong way.

Listening skills
Develop the ability to discern the others 'point'

How to pick our the important from the not important
Distinguishing between:

1. Conclusions
2. Reasons
3. Rubbish

Four minute taking methods

1. Mapping
2. Structured notes
3. Table plan
4. Verbatim notes

How to take the notes in the meeting
Managing the delegates
Use the question 'How do you want me to minute that?'

Have a “Pre-meeting meeting” with the chairperson
Train the chairperson to be your ally
The importance of the agenda
The environment
Get there early to prepare yourself

Writing the finished minutes
Use the ABC principle: Accurate, Brief and Clear

1. Use specific nouns
2. Use specific verbs
3. Avoid ambiguity
4. Decide: active or passive
5. Practice exercises

Three ways to write the final notes

1. Transcript: verbatim
2. Main points
3. Action summary

Final big practice exercise

Minutes writing skills - summary and action plan

The training method follows this general pattern:

1. The trainer gives a clear explanation of the point in question.
2. The trainer then demonstrates the principle and gives specific examples.
3. Then, the delegates practice by doing an exercise with each other.
4. The delegates practice by doing exercise with the trainer.
5. All points are supported with full written notes to take away.
6. Delegates are asked to write down an associated action, for each point made.
7. (At the end of the day, we have about twenty such actions, from which the delegates choose six which are the most personally meaningful).

Please call The Corporate Coach Training Group today on 01452 856091

For all your training enquiries please call: 01452 856091

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