The Moon Talk

gbucknell
6 days ago
4 min read

How to keep your family or team on course with simple mid-course corrections

Getting to the moon isn’t one perfect launch and a straight line to the target.

Whether you’re navigating in the bush, flying an aircraft, or steering a project at work, you’re constantly making small corrections to stay on track. Wind shifts. Terrain changes. Priorities move. People get tired. Life happens.

A Moon Talk is a deliberate check-in designed to do exactly that: adjust course early, while changes are small and cheap.

It’s basically a mid-course correction meeting… but “Moon Talk” sounds cooler—and it reminds everyone that staying on track is a process, not a one-time decision.

What a Moon Talk is (and isn’t)

A Moon Talk is:

A short, regular conversation to confirm direction and correct drift
A space to surface obstacles early
A practical way to align people on the next set of actions
A repeatable ritual that builds trust and momentum

A Moon Talk is not:

A performance review
A blame session
A long meeting with no outcome
A place to re-litigate old arguments

If it turns into any of those, you’ve lost the moon and you’re just floating.

Why Moon Talks work

Most plans don’t fail because the goal was wrong. They fail because:

communication gets assumed instead of checked
small problems aren’t named until they’re big
people drift into different priorities
everyone is busy… and no one is aligned

Moon Talks create alignment, accountability, and course correction—the three ingredients that keep families and teams moving forward together.

How to execute a Moon Talk (simple, every time)

Step 1: Set the cadence

Pick a rhythm and keep it sacred.

Families: weekly (15–25 min), plus a monthly “bigger” one (45–60 min)
Teams: weekly (20–30 min), plus a monthly/quarterly review (60–90 min)

Same time, same day if possible. Consistency beats intensity.

Step 2: Use a fixed agenda (the 7-part Moon Talk)

Keep it tight. Same order every time.

Mission (1 minute): What are we trying to achieve?
Where are we now? (2–3 minutes): Quick status—facts only.
What changed? (2–5 minutes): New info, new constraints, new opportunities.
Drift check (5 minutes): Are we off course? Where? Why?
Course correction (5–10 minutes): Decide adjustments: stop / start / continue.
Commitments (2–5 minutes): Who does what by when?
Close (30 seconds): Confirm next Moon Talk time and one “win” to carry forward.

Step 3: Keep it visible

Moon Talks fail when actions disappear into people’s heads.

Use one simple shared record:

a notebook on the kitchen bench
a whiteboard
a shared doc
a Trello board / Planner / Notes app

Doesn’t matter what tool—what matters is visibility.

Step 4: Finish with “next steps”

A Moon Talk without next steps is just a chat.

End every talk with:

Top 3 priorities before the next Moon Talk
Named owners
Clear deadlines
One risk to watch

Expectations: the rules of engagement

These are the standards that keep Moon Talks safe and useful.

Everyone agrees to:

show up on time (or reschedule—don’t ghost it)
speak in facts first, feelings second (both matter)
focus on solutions, not stories
no ambushes—if it’s heavy, name it and schedule a longer talk
decisions are recorded
commitments are honoured (or renegotiated early)

A Moon Talk is a trust ritual. Treat it like one.

Deliverables: what a Moon Talk produces

Every Moon Talk should generate a small set of tangible outputs.

Minimum deliverables (every time):

Updated priorities (top 1–3)
A short list of actions (who/what/when)
One identified risk + mitigation
Confirmed next Moon Talk date/time

Optional (monthly/quarterly):

Budget check
Progress against bigger goals
Role clarity (who owns what)
Reset of routines and boundaries

Moon Talks for Families

What families use it for

staying aligned on routines, school, sport, health, finances
reducing last-minute chaos
sharing the mental load
catching problems before they become fights
keeping relationships strong while life is busy

Family Moon Talk format (15–25 minutes)

Start with a win: “What went well this week?”
Calendar scan: what’s coming up that could ambush us?
Home priorities: 1–3 things that matter most (not 15 chores)
Support check: “Where do you need help?”
Commitments: who owns what (shopping, bills, lifts, meal plan, etc.)
Close: one appreciation each

Family example deliverables

“This week we prioritise: groceries, school uniform sorted, and a quiet night together.”
“Gavin handles bills by Wednesday, Patricia handles appointment bookings by Monday, kids pack bags nightly.”
“Risk: everyone’s tired—mitigation: early night Wednesday, simplify dinners.”

This turns “someone should do it” into “we’ve got it covered.”

Moon Talks for Businesses and Teams

What teams use it for

keeping projects aligned and removing blockers
staying honest about capacity and deadlines
preventing silent drift across departments
protecting focus from constant distractions
making execution predictable

Team Moon Talk format (20–30 minutes)

Mission: what outcome are we driving?
Scoreboard: 2–5 key metrics or milestones
Blockers: what’s stopping progress right now?
Course correction: adjust scope, sequence, or resourcing
Commitments: actions, owners, due dates
Escalations: what needs leadership support?

Team example deliverables

“Priority this week: ship the draft, test scenario A, confirm supplier lead time.”
“Owner: Sam to deliver by Thursday; Alex to resolve access issue by Tuesday.”
“Risk: dependency on vendor—mitigation: parallel option and decision deadline.”

Moon Talks stop teams from “being busy” and start them “being aligned.”

Common mistakes (and how to avoid them:

Too long: cap it. If it needs more, schedule a separate deep-dive.
No record: write it down. If it’s not written, it didn’t happen.
No ownership: every action needs one owner, not a committee.
Blame tone: redirect to learning and solutions.
Avoiding hard topics: name them and book time; don’t pretend drift doesn’t exist.