Meetings: Why don't people know how to meet?

How to be a meeting genius.

Written by Ed Cook

As I step out of a meeting, I wondered nearly aloud: “What was that about?” Yet another hour spent with a group of people, both on the phone and in the room, where NOTHING of any value was accomplished. So much time together, with so little to show for it. And then Ron Swanson (my favorite character from the TV show, Parks and Recreation), ran through my head: “Why don’t people know how to meet?” For those in the know, he actually said “eat” instead of “meet” but it still works.
 
I wondered why don't people know? Maybe nobody ever showed them? Maybe they haven't experienced a good meeting? With that in mind, here are my Four Guidelines (because there aren’t really rules) to achieve a good meeting.

1. Only meet if you need to have a conversation: No conversation, no meeting. The temptation to have meeting (because that is what you should do at a company) is tremendous, but resist and make sure the topic requires conversation. This could be an opportunity to get clarification, to problem-solve, to make a decision (my favorite!), or to get input.  It is not a place to read the text of a slide. There is a far better mechanism for that. It’s called email. If you are truly just passing information with little expectation of return feedback from a group, email is the thing. The converse holds as well, don't use email for a conversation, instead have a meeting!
2. Focus only on the meeting topic:  Mostly that means no multi-tasking.  I wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard, “sorry could you repeat that?” Often from people in the room!  It's maddening.  If people are not paying attention, then perhaps the meeting agenda is not that useful.  Just put it in an email and be done with it.  Better yet, don’t send it all.  It may not need to be shared.
3. Be creative with formats: There's no law that requires meetings to be sit down affairs scheduled in 30 minute increments. Try a 23 minute stand up meeting and see what happens. Use a 5-minute sand timer to limit how long someone can speak. People will suddenly become aware of the time they take up. Use video so that everyone can see each other. You can formalize some roles and the meeting tone will change. Appoint a timekeeper, a note taker, and a facilitator to keep things moving. It draws people in and gives them permission to move the meeting along
4. Rate your meetings after they are done: This can be painful but instructive. The scale I like is a simple 10-point scale but with some anchors. 5 is, the meeting was as useful as being at my desk working. That’s not bad. It means there was some value to the meeting. 10 is, the best meeting I’ve attended this week. It’s a high bar (hopefully) but shouldn't we be striving to make these meetings useful? 1 is, I’d rather be standing at the gates of hell inquiring about entrance. This is not as much hyperbole as you might think. It's just an inquiry about entrance not actual admittance. You know you've been in meetings where these sorts of thoughts come up. I find that many meetings land about a 4. That’s not good. It means other better work could be done outside the meeting. Even a 7 meeting can be of great value. They don't all have to be 10s.

For those still skeptical that these will make a difference, I ask you to imagine the opposite. People come together, they don't know why, and they are not sure what to do. They do it because others do it. It may be enjoyable but often not productive. To me that's not work, that's playing company. Imagine hearing, “I'll make the agenda!” “I'll get the snacks!” “I'll send out the invite!” Those people are playing, not working. It's silly.
 
Employ even one of these techniques and you will be a meeting master. Employ them all and you will be a meeting genius.