Most people f*ck up meetings.
We spend ~12 hours/wk in them.
We spend 3 years of our career in them.
Yet we don't do anything to make meetings better.
Here are 6 ways to fix them today 🧵
Meetings are a last resort, not a first option.
There's a HUGE opportunity cost.
A one-hour meeting with five people isn't a one-hour meeting.
It's a five-hour meeting in terms of cost.
Understand the opportunity cost of every meeting you call.
Cut all meetings by 33% when scheduling.
I hate when a meeting goes the full time because that's what the calendar says.
If a meeting is 30 minutes, schedule for 20.
If a meeting is 60 minutes, schedule for 40.
It forces you to stay on track & respect everyone's time.
Every meeting should have a plan.
People just expect meetings to go well.
When else in life would you expect results without a plan or expectations?
You wouldn't.
Everyone should enter a meeting knowing:
- the agenda
- the purpose
- the desired outcome
99% of meetings shouldn't be meetings.
- Meetings are not for catch-ups
- Meetings are not for initial brainstorms
- Meetings are not for status updates
Meetings are for 3-5 people to make an important decision that has cross-organizational impact.
Iterate on meetings.
We assume meetings are great and they improve over time.
That's like launching a product then going on autopilot.
No measuring engagement.
No soliciting feedback.
No making thoughtful changes.
A meeting is a product & attendees are your customers.
Meetings must be preserved.
Meetings are ephemeral & must be memorialized for people not in attendance.
Every meeting should have minutes that outline:
- Who attended
- The agenda
- The outcomes
- Next steps
Tag someone who appreciates the value of a kick-ass meeting below 👇.
And if there are any other rules for kick-ass meetings that I'm missing, reply below 👇
If you enjoyed this thread & want more on startups & career, follow me on Twitter: @businessbarista
If you want my deep dive into each of the 6 meeting rules above, check out my podcast episode:
spoti.fi/3gOdGf3
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