ADHD glossary · Family perspectives
Meeting agenda: share the questions before the conversation
A meeting agenda is a shared outline of what people propose to discuss at a planned conversation. In this guide, each topic has a question or purpose: exchange information, explore options, or consider a choice. Putting something on the agenda does not decide it or require every participant to accept it.
General education and practical perspectives. Editorial standards.
An appointment agenda holds an attendee's own questions. This shared version asks what the participants want space for together. The agenda is the preparation artifact, not the conversation itself or the record of what people eventually decided.
Worked example: planning a family photo display
In this invented example, a teen, a parent, and a grandparent want to discuss a temporary photo display for a family gathering. The parent starts an agenda with “Choose pictures and arrange the wall.” The teen points out that they have not decided whether the display should use a wall at all.
They rewrite the first topic as “Which display format do we want to consider?” The teen adds a tabletop option. The grandparent adds “Which older pictures might we include?” and offers to bring a few candidates, without promising that every picture can be copied or displayed.
The parent notices a separate question: whose pictures are they proposing to use, and who needs to be asked? They place that before selecting individual pictures. The agenda now names the questions without pretending the answers already exist.
They leave buying materials outside this conversation until a format is chosen. A sibling who will not join asks that their pictures not be included. The parent records that limit without adding a demand for an explanation or asking the teen to negotiate it.
Copy a topic plan
Conversation / date:
Purpose we are proposing:
Who can suggest changes to this agenda:
Topic:
Question we want to address:
Purpose: information / options / possible choice
What we need to know before considering a choice:
Whose contribution or permission is still missing:
Topic we will begin with:
Other topics, if participants want to include them:
What is outside this conversation:
Where participants can suggest additions or corrections:
Our proposed endpoint:
Repeat the topic section only as needed. “Discuss the display” may be enough for an informal chat; a more specific question is useful when people have different expectations about what is being decided.
Check the outline together
Share the proposal in a form the participants can use. A child may add a drawing or dictate a question. A grandparent may prefer a paper copy. The person preparing the agenda can ask about format without making someone disclose a personal reason for their preference.
At the beginning, ask whether the outline still fits. An urgent practical question may change the order; a missing input may mean a proposed choice remains only a discussion. If a new topic appears, ask whether to add it or save it. Do not treat its omission from the original page as a reason someone cannot mention it.
This is an optional planning format for ordinary shared work. It is not a formal meeting procedure, a measure of participation, or a promise that a difficult conversation will go smoothly.
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