Given that we spend so much of our work day in meetings, it seems wrong that we are not able to describe them in more glowing terms.  It seems people would rather poke themselves repeatedly in the eye with a sharp stick than go to them.

So if meetings are so AWFUL, why do we have SO MANY of them…. and more importantly what would it take for meetings to be something that is considered a worthwhile use of our time?  And make no mistake, time is your most important currency in an organisation.  Think about it, when people give you back time (a meeting finishes early) or any time you can give some back to a colleague, it’s a great moment, right?! 

Patrick Lencioni, in his marvellous book Death by Meetings, offers some insight into why meetings frankly, suck (my words, not his). He says that when you think about the best meetings you have ever attended, it’s likely they involved some sort of resolved conflict.  He is a big exponent of ensuring that meetings surface and facilitate effective conflict that leads to positive and powerful decision-making.  And I agree with him.  Meetings need to have some juice to get people engaged.
 
And.... I reckon it comes down to the meeting CULTURE of an organisation. If you are experiencing any of the following, you may have a toxic meeting culture. 

• Consistently start late or go over time
• Initial agenda items (if you have an agenda) get more air time and later ones get rushed or left out
• People over or under contributing
• Wrong people in the meeting (or too few/too many)
• Rehashing the same old things
• No structure or flow
• Decisions aren’t made
• No idea of who agreed to do what at the end

Ever caught yourself thinking this… “I’m sitting in this meeting and I have no idea why I’m here and I really could be somewhere else doing something WAY MORE productive”. 

You might just need a Meeting Detox. As a starting point, here are four things you can do that can start to improve the culture of meetings in your team and or organisation: 

• Start with the Why?  Too often we start with the What or the Who.  Consider the purpose of the meeting
• Keep it simple.  Agendas are often too cramped.  In a 60 min meeting at best you can discuss 3 things well and reach conclusions.
• Have a structure.  Don’t   Allow the right amount of time for discussion, conclusions and decisions.
• Consider busting the default. In many organisations the default time for a meeting is 60 mins. What if they were 30 or 45? Do you really need 60 mins?

What’s your meeting culture? What could you do to Detox your meetings?

#makingmeetingswork