Step 6: Check to see if it’s working

1. For a significant project or outcome you’re responsible for, ask yourself the following questions:
   1. Is the project on track to achieve a successful outcome?
   2. What evidence supports your assessment?
   3. What evidence contradicts your assessment?
   4. Are you examining both datasets objectively, or does emotion pull you toward one or the other?
2. Create your own checkpoint meeting. Start by creating a charter for the meeting. Write down the names of people who should be there. How long does it need to be? How often should it take place with the team? Write out a standard agenda with the main topics you will cover in each meeting, for example “hot topics”, followed by recovery plans and then project updates.
3. Are you good at chairing meetings? Google it for practical tips.
4. Now, the biggy: Is your team, as it is currently constituted, able to have a good checkpoint meeting? Will it descend into a blame-fest? Do people feel safe enough to report bad news and speak their minds, or do they keep their heads down for fear of embarrassment or recrimination? We’ll explore what you can do to foster a trusting, energised and collaborative culture in the next two chapters.