Meeting Guidelines
“The best meeting of the year.”
Be Professional – In our job, we want to demonstrate excellence and professionalism in all we do.
Be Present – From the time dinner starts to the end of part two, we are “on.” Aim to eliminate any distractions (no multitasking, texting, talking during meetings, etc.).
Be Concise – We honor others by staying within our allotted time for part 1 + 2.
Be Prepared - The whole team is responsible for making great meetings.
Be Leaders – Lead out in conversations with staff and students.
DINNER WITH CAMPUS MINISTER
One of the main reasons we want to have dinner with the staff beforehand is to learn about their campus, meetings, and students. It is also a chance for the staff to get to know you and build confidence in their decision to allow The Traveling Team to speak at their ministry. The following are possible questions to ask the campus minister at dinner and questions they may ask you:
GENERAL INFO ABOUT THE STAFF
How long have you been on staff with (name of ministry)
GENERAL INFO ABOUT THE CAMPUS
How many students go to school here?
What are some of the big degrees that draw students here?
How many international students are here?
INFO ABOUT THE CAMPUS MINISTRY/STUDENTS
What have you been teaching this semester?
What are some things you’re recruiting students for this summer?
What do you see keeping students from being involved with missions?
INFO ABOUT THE TRAVELING TEAM
What organization/denomination is The Traveling Team a part of?
Answer: The Traveling Team is a standalone organization. We are interdenominational and will partner with any evangelical campus ministry. [Don’t mention our partnerships with the mission agencies.]
What do you do?
Answer: We travel about 8 months out of the year challenging students to take personal responsibility for the Great Commission. We have three teams across the country that have about 40-50 campus ministry meetings every semester.
How did The Traveling Team get started?
Answer: The founder of The Traveling Team was a campus minister and understood all the plates that campus ministers have to keep spinning and realized, at times, how missions takes a backseat. The Traveling Team was started in 1999 to aid campus ministers in bringing missions vision to their students.
Be respectful during your time with the campus staff. Be a good listener. At times people will share openly about painful or serious issues and when they do, respond attentively, never assume they are joking, and stopeating to listen.
PRE-MEETING
You will arrive 45-60 minutes before the start of the meeting. During the hour, the team will do things like setting up slides, doing a sound check, setting up a book table, reviewing the meeting flow of the night with the staff, etc. Having an hour also gives the team time to feel settled as well as connect with the staff/students.
NIGHTLY TEAM ROLES
Meet Students – Getting to know students is an excellent way to build credibility. Over the years, we have seen a clear correlation between the students we mingle with before the meeting are the students that come to part 2 (and then get on phone calls).
Set up a book table. We set up a book table for two reasons 1) to provide students with top missions resources 2) it creates a space for students to approach staff and meet the team.
Part Two Location – If the staff have not already reserved your team specific classrooms, ask campus staff if they can find your team rooms or if they have recommendations on where to meet (lobby, campus café, etc.)
Commitment Cards – Set commitment cards on the chairs where the students will sit. If it’s a large meeting, ask the staff if their student leaders could help pass out commitment cards at the door.
Thank You Card & Green Light – Write a thank you card to the campus staff and prep “Green Light” material for the team leader.
Tech Setup – Connect with the tech person to set up the presentation slides and check that the microphones are working.
Coordinate with Emcee – Confirm the meeting outline with campus staff and the emcees. This helps make sure everyone is on the same page.
Count Students – During the meeting, count the number of people in the main meeting and in part 2.
DURING THE MEETING
INTRO
A Traveling Team staff member will introduce The Traveling Team and give a brief overview of what students should expect from the night. This takes the pressure off the ministry to remember who and what The Traveling Team does.
MAIN MESSAGE
At most meetings, we will give Biblical Basis for Missions in 35 minutes and trace the theme of God’s heart for the world all the way through the Bible.
OUTRO
The same staff member who introduced the night will close out the main message. The staff will remind students about Part 2 (sharing where it will take place). The outro typically works best at the very end of the formal gathering time (for example, after worship or final announcements).
AFTER THE MEETING
When the meeting ends, the team will begin recruiting students to stick around for part 2.
The team leader will give the campus minister the thank you note and ask for permission to share agencies at every meeting (green light).
Be available to connect with students but keep your conversations short. The primary goal should be to get students to come to part 2.
PART TWO
The team will gather students and split them into two groups. It’s always better to lead smaller groups even though it’s tempting to keep everyone together for convenience. The team will then share the World VisionIllustration which summarizes the night in a simple, reproducible tool and gives them helpful next steps.
LEADING PART TWO
Aside from the team leader, the team will rotate between who gives the intro/ outro and who will lead a World Vision Illustration group. This ensures that the whole team gets to participate in every meeting.
When leading part 2, the goal is to share the illustration in 20 minutes and give yourself 5 minutes to close out the illustration and gather contact information.
Introduce yourself briefly
Cast vision for why you are sharing the illustration.
To give students practical next steps
To train students in a reproducible tool to share with others.
Present the World Vision Illustration
Cast Vision for Gosend.info
Give them plenty of time to fill out the form
Be available to answer any questions students may have.
