7 Quick Techniques that Make Meetings Better Today
The opportunity of meetings is they can energize instead of drain.
Make meetings better today:
1. Start on time. Don’t dawdle. End early.
A person who wastes time disrespects life.
Brisk meetings energize teams especially when they end early.
2. Declare purpose.
Please tell me why we’re meeting.
3. Serve up the meat.
Avoid wrong-headed thinking like, “Let’s get a few dainty items off the table before we get to the real reason we’re here.”
Minimize distractions. Connection time isn’t a distraction.
4. Go beyond discussing.
The goal of meetings is deciding, not discussing. Discussion is a means, not an end.
Great meetings enable action. Generate three options to resolve an issue and choose the best one with a vote, for example. Define obstacles and choose a path forward.
Cancel the meetings where talk is the goal.
5. Make topics action items.
“Agenda topics” are blackholes that drain brains and invite irrelevant blather. Narrow the focus of conversation by declaring a specific outcome or action item.
Tip: Listen carefully when people talk. If they move the topic sideways, interrupt them. Restate the purpose of the conversation and ask them to explain the connection. (It’s always possible you’re missing something.)
Many things are interesting. Only a few are useful.
6. Inform less. Act more.
Informational meetings are drudgery. You suck the life out of people by forcing them to listen to irrelevant drivel. Inform when information is relevant to everyone in the room.
Honor and fuel energy. The cardinal sin of leadership is draining people’s energy.
7. Seek Feedback.
Ask the team, “What’s one thing that would make this meeting better?” Or “What’s one thing you/I could do to make this meeting better?”
Vote on which suggestion to adopt in your next meeting.
Which of the above suggestions do you think would most improve your meetings?
What suggestion can you offer that would make meetings better today?
More practical techniques:
10 Commandments that Fix All Lousy Meetings
4 Tools to Keep Meetings On Track
Why Your Meetings Stink—and What to Do About It
I completely agree, especially for larger groups meeting — and yet, for many teams working virtually, there is an interesting tension between letting (a few?) relational aspects happen — when people would not otherwise meet in any context — and getting and keeping things moving forward.
Thanks Joshua. Here’s a tip someone gave me for structured relationship building. Have someone take a picture of the inside of their refrigerator. Show it, but don’t tell whose fridge it is. Ask the group to say whose fridge it is and why they think it’s that person.
I find #1 incredibly important. Always start on time and show others that you value their time as well. It sends a great message without needing to say a thing. Keep on target and to the point, it is easier to hold interest this way. Listening carefully and seeking feedback allows others to feel involved and valued as well.