Construct Rules for Discussion

Although it usually seems unlikely in the beginning, a healthy disagreement can easily turn nasty when people are invested in a topic. Decide early on what will be considered inappropriate comments and make sure someone monitors these in later meetings. Here are some rules to consider:

• No personal attacks on a person's intelligence, background, way of speaking, etc.
• No yelling; all disagreements should be kept in a rational tone
• No name calling
• If a person objects to a comment directed at them, the conversation stops there, no matter anyone's opinion of the objection
• Out of Line Comments: "That's a dumb idea;" "You don't know what you're talking about;" "It figures a man/woman would say that"