=====Guidelines for Planning Meetings=====
We want to keep our planning meetings short and focused.  As a result, we have developed the following set of meeting guidelines.

  * Please help us keep the meeting short and focused.  Concentrate on topics and dates.
    * Please no discussions on the topics; that's what the scheduled presentation is for.
    * Any discussion should be short, and to the point: is this topic worth presenting to the group
  * Despite the name of our group, we have a significant leeway in topics that span historical, present, and future perspectives.
  * Some topics will be presented periodically (subject to speaker availability) as the content changes (e.g., recent discoveries or findings)

===The process===
The general flow of the planning meeting
  - Review all commitments on the current schedule (each: ok? delete? follow-up status)
  - Insert a Potpourri every 5 +/- weeks (can be rescheduled)
    * This is to allow time for completing unfinished presentations, short presentations, and interesting videos
  - Go over the list of potential topics on the [[lctg_in_the_works|potential topics page]]
    * Worth presenting?
    * Do we have or can we get a presenter?
    * Add to schedule?  If so, when?
    * Remove from future consideration?
  - Go over recommendations from the group.  (Some who can't attend have sent in recommendations beforehand)
//And only then, if time remains, we can have a general discussion.//

===Afterwards===
About a week after the primary planning meeting, Bob, John, Peter, and Steve meet:
  * review the results and tie up any to-do's
  * produce other to-do's, such as: who will contact which speaker and other follow-ups needed
  * choose potential topics and/or videos for potpourris

====Elevator Speech====
  * Limit discussion. We are just scheduling presentations and topics.
  * We first go through existing schedule
  * Then go through potential topics and schedule them (or leave on hold or remove them)
  * Schedule potpourri every 5 weeks or so
  * After above, consider recommendations from the group
  * We are not here to discuss the topics, only to schedule them (and leave discussion to the meeting on the topic)