During the headlines section of our Level 10 Meeting, some of our leaders share long, rambling updates that are actually hidden, unresolved issues they are trying to fix solo. How do we force them to stop hiding issues inside headlines and drop them to the Issues List?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

The customer and employee headlines section is designed to be a quick, five-minute sweep of significant organizational news, not a therapy session or a hidden project update. When a leader uses this time to describe a complex client situation or an employee conflict, they are often trying to avoid the vulnerability of putting it on the Issues List.

As the facilitator of your Level 10 Meeting™, you must actively police this boundary. The moment a leader begins explaining a problem or describing how they are trying to fix a difficult situation on their own, you must interrupt them.

Use a direct, supportive phrase like: that sounds like a major issue, let's drop it down. Do not ask for their permission, just write it on the Issues List and move to the next person.

By immediately capturing the topic as an issue, you protect the schedule of the meeting and ensure the entire leadership team has the opportunity to help solve it during IDS®. Running a business requires collective brainpower, and trying to handle major problems in a silo hurts the organization.

Setting this clear boundary teaches your team that admitting to a problem is not a failure, but hiding it inside a long-winded headline is a waste of everyone's time. This practice keeps your weekly pulse clean and highly productive.