Making Space for Introverts & Extroverts

God made introverts and extroverts and we need each other! Your group will probably have a pretty even mix. In-person groups are challenged to honor both, but online platforms seem to draw out extroverts and allow introverts to recede. Keep this from happening with a few guidelines.

1. Up Front
   Explain at the start of the group that since the group platforms allow only one person to speak at a time you will facilitate the conversation in a manner more structured than a typical small group that meets in a living room.

2. Facilitate
   Ask specific questions of specific people. If you start with the introvert, then open it up to everyone else the extroverts will take their turn.

3. Batter Up
   If you have many questions to work through, consider creating an order like a batting line up in baseball and work through the lineup.

4. Flag
   Ask members to raise their hands to flag (yes, you can even do this online) and call on specific people. You can still call on your introverts – even if they don’t raise their hands.

5. Edit
   Cut short the “rabbit trails.” Off-topic observations are a favorite pastime of many extroverts so halting them politely and quickly will help keep extroverts from dominating.

6. Look
   Take note of who is not sharing and invite them into the conversation.

7. Draw Out
   Be an assertive leader without dominating yourself. Avoid monologues and lectures and think of yourself as a facilitator of dialogue that gets better the more people are involved.

Taking Your Group From Good to Great

If you want a great group experience, there are a few things you can do before the meeting to help it move from good to great! Consider sending an email or text with the following elements to prepare your members for the group:

1. The Purpose of the Lesson
   Usually, the purpose is connected to the lesson title and sometimes the material tells you up front. Even if you have to dig a little, it’s worth it to know where the lesson is trying to go. Share this with your group members.

2. Icebreakers
   A fun, silly, or personal question can help group members get in the right frame of mind for the gathering. You may even invite members to answer the ice-breaker via email.

3. The Agenda
   If you’re meeting for an hour it’s probably something like this: Catch up (10 minutes), Discuss (40 minutes), Prayer request, and closing (10 minutes). You can adjust those times and change the order, but that’s a standard online agenda. With good time management, your group can cover a lot of territory in minimal time. (Remember: If you have a free Zoom account, it will only allow you to have a maximum of 40 min. for each meeting)

4. Links, Podcasts, and Clips
   Some groups prefer to watch video content together keep in mind that every minute the group is watching a video is one less minute for discussion and prayer. This is really important- ant if your group only has an hour together to meet. Help your members by sending out links to key content before the meeting.

5. Discussion Questions
   By giving the questions in advance you’re encouraging your group members to think ahead. While some are quick on their feet, most of us benefit if we have those questions early. Those questions really come in handy if members have access to them before they watch or read key content.

Try these elements at your next meeting and take it to the next level!