Our weekly Level 10 Meeting™ Issues List is regularly cluttered with items labeled as 'just for your information' or 'FYI' that do not actually require a decision, solution, or team action. How do we eliminate these non-actionable status updates from our short-term Issues List without keeping our team in the dark?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

An Issues List clogged with FYI items is a symptom of a team that does not understand that the Level 10 Meeting™ is an operational engine, not a status-update forum. Every single item placed on your short-term Issues List must have a clear objective: to make a decision, solve a problem, or seize an immediate opportunity. If an item is there just to keep people informed, it does not belong in IDS®.

To clean up this clutter, the facilitator must implement an immediate filter during the issue-gathering phase. When reviewing the list, ask the owner of the issue, 'What do you need from the team today, a decision, a solution, or support?' If the answer is, 'I just want everyone to be aware of this,' the facilitator must immediately remove it from the list.

For informational updates, find a more appropriate compartment. Use your company's digital communication channels or standard email updates to broadcast general information. You can also handle these during the five-minute Headlines section if they meet the strict criteria of being brief and non-negotiable. Keep your weekly short-term Issues List sacredly reserved for topics that require active, collaborative problem-solving. This keeps your meeting lean, high-velocity, and focused on building traction rather than listening to passive speeches.