I sort of thought by now we would have figured out how to have meetings that don’t drain us of our will to live. And yet here we are, still suffering through endless meetings that SUCK. Woof.
I get the sense that generally we all know what makes meetings suck, but don’t know what to do differently, so we just keep on sucking. Like your sad, middle-aged vacuum cleaner with duct tape on the cord that kiiiiiinda picks up dirt but still leaves your floor gross enough that the bottoms of all your socks are an unsettling brownish color.
Be better than those sad machines, folks!!!
OK Let’s break it down. There are the basics, that really no one should ever get wrong; junior varsity level, for those who give at least a small f*ck; and the Olympic champions, whose meetings you would practically pay to go to because they’re more like must-attend events.
The basics
Have a reason. You might see this as have an agenda, but I’d go a little further to say that you need to have a reason to meet live vs. simply send an email. If only one person talks during that meeting – send an email. Or start a blog. HA.
Stick to time. This is obvious and yet violated constantly. Don’t be a greedy time hoarder. Start on time. End on time. Bonus points for ending early if you finish what’s needed and don’t just drag things until the end time.
Cultivate your invite list. There should never be someone in your meeting that doesn’t talk. Not even a note-taker (especially in our current world where we can record meetings). Also, any grown adult attending a meeting should take personal responsibility for taking note of the things that matter, or don’t bother attending.
Junior varsity
Have pre-work that primes the group. Don’t send people bullshit busywork, but help prime them for the conversation / discussion / dynamic you want to have. Did you read something interesting that you think might work for the business? Don’t just tell them in that meeting and then ask for their opinions on the spot – send the article, offer a few thought-provoking questions, and ask them to come ready to share their thoughts and discuss.
Share the desired outcome of the meeting and ask the whole group to be accountable for it. If you’re the only one holding responsibility, you’ll be the only one invested in the outcome. This leads to micromanaging (a whole other blog post full of no-no’s) and much unpleasantness.
Do the unexpected. Take a 2-minute break to have everyone lie down on the floor and put their legs up against the wall or stretch / move in a silly or weird way. It gets the blood moving, changes your body chemistry, and shakes people out of whatever corner they might have boxed the conversation into.
Olympic champions
Include people who are removed from the topic / content. Want an interesting perspective on how to reach new customers? Obviously your marketing folks are in that meeting, but invite someone from HR or engineering. Since it’s not the same topic or work they’re surrounded by day-in-and-day-out, they just might have a funky thought or suggestion that could crack open the collective imagination.
Be the dumbest person in the room. If you want extraordinary results, bring extraordinary people together. If you aim to be the least educated, least knowledgeable, or least experienced in the room, you’ll invite in all sorts of magic that you’ll never have access to if you’re worried about making sure everyone knows you’re the smartest and best.
Frame the result you want instead of the process you think will make it happen. If you have a wide variety of smart and energetic people in a room who know where you’re headed, let them and their imaginations and ideas run wild. You may figure out the thing you came to figure out, but you may also end up doing something 10 times better that you didn’t even realize needed doing.
What have you done – or more importantly, what WILL you do – to make your meetings not-to-be-missed events?
PS: If you are starting to sweat through your deodorant because the meeting you scheduled doesn’t even cover The Basics, let’s talk. It’s time to raise your game!
Want blog posts to be delivered to your inbox when they’re released? Be the first to read, and get exclusive content available only in the emails (recommendations of things I’m reading / doing, resources I use often, etc.). Join here!