One thing that will help get people to come to your meetings is to hold them at a convenient time and place. If you hold your meetings on the same day of each month, at the same time and at a regular place, people will know what to expect. Make your meetings fun! Server refreshments, hold a raffle, or bring in a guest speaker. make sure you announce these events on your meeting notice. People will be more likely to come to your meetings if you get things done and have some fun. Make sure you formally invite people with a flyer and a conversation. People like to come to meetings if they know their help is needed nd if they feel that it is an important use of their time. Make it easy for people to come to your meetings by providing day care so that parents can attend. Consider awarding a prize to the tenant who brings the most other tenants to the meeting!

     Here is a checklist for how to structure a typical tenant meeting:

• Introduce yourself and welcome everyone
• Distribute and discuss the agenda and the rules for the meeting, for example, who is chairing, when questions will be taken, how votes will be held, how much time you will spend on each item.
• Review the purpose of the meeting and remind people of what has happened since the last meeting and what will have to be decided at this meeting. Recognize people and thanks them for the work they did since the last meeting.
• Allow time for discussion of issues
• Keep the tone of the meeting upbeat and focused
• Give everyone something to do when they leave the meeting, like telling someone else what happened at the meeting, have them handout a newsletter or a flyer, or bringing someone else to the meeting next time.
• Summarize the major points of the meeting and review agreements people made to do things
• Set your next meeting time and choose a chairperson for that meeting.