7 Tips for Better Meetings #164
Ever been to a non-productive meeting? Me too, and they are all too common.
Here are seven tips to improve your meetings (shared from our Getting Stuff Done (GSD) Program):
- Always have an objective for the meeting. Share this with all attendees. Don’t deviate. Too often we delve into how to do things when we’ve not clarified what we’re seeking out of the meeting.
- Limit meetings to only those you absolutely must-have. Once you clarify the objective, you may not need to meet, may not need as much time, or maybe able to handle things another way.
- Hold “standing” meetings – don’t sit down and watch how much faster things happen.
- Stick to the agenda or objective. Let your focus take over. Don’t deviate or get off on tangents.
- Eliminate comfortable chairs in your meeting spaces – they promote relaxation which means people settle in. (see #3)
- Eliminate “gotta minute?” meetings (you know, the ones where someone stops by interrupting you, and for some reason, they just can’t wait). Most of these can be handled in a weekly meeting, written down or scheduled. You’ll gain 45 minutes back every time you say “no.”
- Use the EOS™ Level 10™ meeting format with your team. It’s bulletproof and will give you on average 4-5x times the length of the meeting time back each week.
For more suggestions on running more effective meetings, see: