Study groups are a great way to work through The GEO Principle. A good study group will help you turn The GEO Principle from concept into reality.  

The first step to forming a group is the read the book: The GEO Principle: God in Every Occupation means purpose for every job – even yours! It is not necessary to have done the reading recommended in the book’s “For Further Consideration” sections. At least a casual familiarity with scripture is helpful.  

Think about who you are going to invite to form your group. Consider whether the group should be all-male or all-female. Mixed gender and single-gender groups can be successful, but it is worth it to consider what kind of group would work best for you. Men and women have different communications styles, and draw from different experiences during their upbringings. Consider the degree to which you believe these differences would aid or impede the kind of group you feel like you can lead.  

Scheduling
Determine the best frequency of the meetings. Weekly works best for most groups.  Given the size of the book, it makes sense to start out by planning to cover two or three chapters per week. In meetings of about an hour to 90 minutes, discuss the book and go through the questions at the end of each chapter.  

If you skip the additional readings suggested at the end of each chapter, your group will get through the book in eight to ten weeks. If you include study of the additional reading material, you could easily keep the group going for a year or more. 

Where to meet
Next, consider where you are going to meet. If you meet at work, make sure you have the appropriate authorization to use a conference room, break room or other facility. If you are meeting after hours in a work setting, be sure to alert your boss or security so they know you are meeting. If you decide to meet in your home, consider the distance each group participant will have to travel to attend meetings. Do you have a quiet place to meet? If you have children at home, you will want to make sure there is someplace you can meet for 90 minutes without interruption. 

Sometimes groups decide to rotate meeting places between the homes of the group participants. This can work, but it is more complicated than simply choosing one place to meet each week. If you want to rotate, you might choose to meet for six weeks in a row at one place, then the next six weeks at another place, and so forth. 

If you are meeting at home, it is nice to be able to offer a snack and something to drink. Food and conversation go together. Refreshments are not essential, but if you can offer them, they add to the group. 

Make communication easy
At the first meeting, collect everyone’s name, address, phone number (including cell phone) and email address. You will want to be able to contact people. Inevitably, things come up that require last minute communication with group members and you will want to be sure you have the information to do so. After you collect the information, it is a good idea to compile it all onto one document. Makes copies of it and give everyone a copy at the second meeting. 

It’s a good idea to provide name tags for every meeting. Remembering names is not easy for some people. It is always uncomfortable to have someone in the group whose name escapes you. Come up with a name tag that can be re-used week after week. Group members can leave the name tags with the host and put them on before each meeting.  

Be prepared
It is inevitable that at each meeting, one or two members will forget their copy of the book. So, always have two or three extra copies of the book with you at each meeting. It also is a good idea to have a couple of extra Bibles with you.  

Take a few minutes before each meeting to determine what you are going to cover. Use a highlighter to mark up you own copy of The GEO Principle. It is best if you have considered the questions and action steps prior to the meeting so you can easily share them when you are meeting. Also, check out the GEO Principle blog before every meeting. You will pick up additional ideas to bring to the study group discussion. 

Stay focused
As a leader, it is important that you keep the purpose of the group front and center in your mind: you are meeting in order to discuss and consider the concept of bringing God to work. You are meeting to share ideas about bringing your faith to the workplace. At the first meeting clarify this point to set the tone for discussion for as long as the group meets.  

Include a short prayer or scripture reading in every meeting. Be sensitive to the fact that people of several faith traditions may be participating in your group. Keep the prayer short and simple. Remember, this is not a prayer group. Also, just as The GEO Principle is not a book about theology, your study group should not be a place for sorting out the theological differences between denominations. Throughout the course of discussion, it is certainly appropriate for members to reference their own faith traditions, but they should refrain from characterizing denominations that are not their own. 

Leading doesn’t have to mean teaching
Although you are the group leader, don’t feel like you have to be the smartest person in the room. Everyone in your group will have equally valid experiences involving their work. Let everyone share those experiences. Your job as a leader is to encourage the others to share as much as possible. Sometimes you will have a group member who prefers to listen much more than they like to talk. That’s okay. Always invite that person to share ideas but if they choose not to, don’t make them feel bad about that choice. 

Sometimes, group leaders run into the opposite problem: they have a member who dominates by talking too much. This is a situation where a group leader needs to speak up by saying something like: “Let’s hear what the others have to say.” It is very important that a leader not allow an over-bearing group member to destroy the group so that others no longer want to participate or attend. Sometimes, it becomes necessary for a study group leader to meet privately with the talkative member. Be light-hearted and kind about it. Say something like: “Clearly, you have a gift for communication. I love listening to you, but I also want to hear from the other members of the group. During the meetings, try to hold back and give others a chance to speak.”  

Respect everyone’s time
Be sure to end on time. Everyone’s time is valuable, so if you say you are going to conduct at 60-minute meeting, stick to 60 minutes. Depending on the group, one hour to 90 minutes is about the right amount of time to devote to each meeting. Conclude each meeting by agreeing on the work that each member will do before the next meeting. Generally, that includes reading two or three chapters of the book and thinking through the questions at the end of each chapter.






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