Designing a course
   

Minimum course length: 3 days
Maximum course length: 10 days

Typical course outline for a three-day course (this is not written in stone):

   
Day 1 - Wednesday

5 p.m.        Host & team arrive and meet

Day 2 - Thursday

Host & team are on call all day, with possible meetings throughout the day. At 3:30 p.m. host and team are on deck to make any last-minute arrangements and be there as guests arrive.

5 p.m.        Guests fill out pre-course questionnaire

7 p.m.        Pre-course meeting with guests

Days 3 & 4 - Friday & Saturday

7 a.m.        Pre-course meeting

9 a.m.        Course begins

12 noon     Lunch & afternoon break

5 p.m.        Course reconvenes

6:30 or 7    Dinner break

8-8:30        Course resumes


Day 5 - Sunday

7 a.m.        Pre-course meeting for host & team

9 a.m.        Course begins

12 noon     Course completion

Dinner often is served in the course room.

  
Pre-course period

You don't win by making offerings in the temple or getting the counsel of spirits. You have to make calculations. With a great many calculations, you are ensured of victory; with some, your chances of victory are improved. How slim, then, are the chances of victory of one who makes no calculations at all?

- Sun Tzu,  The Art of War

The hosting team arrives at least one day before the course is to begin. The host is required to attend any gatherings of the team called by the team leader during that pre-course day.

There will be a pre-course gathering the evening before the course officially starts. For example, if the course starts Friday morning, the pre-course gathering is Thursday evening. This gathering should be considered part of the course, and every guest should attend if at all possible. All host and guest guidelines for the course apply to this gathering as well.

There is also a morning pre-course meeting every day of the course, usually about two hours before the course. The host will attend these meetings as well.

These pre-meetings are extremely important, because there have been instances where the entire result of the course was determined at these meetings.

 
Celebration evening

Courses are usually completed with a celebration evening. It is usually, but not necessarily, the last evening of the course - this can be worked out in advance and changed on short notice by the people in charge of the course.

Tell your guests to plan on being in a talent show and doing skits during the celebration evening, and to keep a sharp eye out for skit material during the course.