Meetings are no fun. They’re not. Don’t kid yourself. Meetings are only really necessary for the one who planned the meeting, all the others are most of the time doing other things. So wake up and see the real world we all know exists but hate to admit to it.
At some point, I read that (I guess it was) Shopify put an end to all meetings with more than two people. Why? Because they thought meetings with more than 2 people simply killed productivity. And I guess they are right!
But did I dare to be that brave? Did I dare to forbid all meetings with 3 or more? Nah… I’m not such a hero. So I just figured out: how can I make the most out of the meetings I organize? How do I make it beneficial for all attendees?
So what can you do? Here are 8 steps to get it done correctly!
1. Have a clear agenda before the meeting.
Share it with all participants. And if you make updates: share it again. Be crystal clear before you start what everyone’s role is, what the workflow will be and what they can expect as a result.
Before planning make sure it is not just you telling updates to all attendees what could have been an email. Think it through before gathering everyone together. Writing an agenda is a great force of nature.
2. Keep everyone involved to minimize distractions.
Most people start opening tabs and doing tasks in the background during meetings. Kill that by being clear about everybody’s role and keep them all involved.
3. Facilitate the details.
Be clear about specific meeting rules for speaking order, turn-taking, and other facilitation considerations.
4. Be inclusive for all participants
I see a lot of hybrid meetings where the remote workers have all their own laptops, but the office people are all cramped together in a screen with a distance camera or cozy together in front of 1 laptop. Talking about an inclusivity killer… Make it all the same for everyone, and make everyone feel just as welcome to the meeting.
5. Keep the time.
Be respectful of participants ‘ agendas. You set a time for the meeting, and an agenda, and keep up with that time. Don’t go over and preferably give some time back to all participants.
6. Keep it simple.
Especially if it’s a cross-structural meeting. Marketers hate developer terms. Developers hate marketing jargon. Just speak plain English.
7. Don’t discuss tasks
Just don’t do it, it’s a waste of time. The purpose of any meeting is to have meaningful conversations. Everyone has their expertise, trust them on it. If they have problems it’s better to have them addressed in a 1-on-1.
8. Reinforce feedback.
Actively seek feedback during meetings, especially at the end of it. Ask if the meeting was valuable for others so you can do better next time. This is always a good idea!