Unless you live on another planet, you’ve had to sit through a meeting that was a complete waste of time. Everyone hates them. Nobody likes them. You sit there thinking of the things you could be doing – or programming your cell phone to call you to an even more important meeting…
So, is there anything you can do to avoid that experience in the future? Actually, there are. Even if you’re not in charge of the meeting, here are 10 things you can do to turn a miserable experience into one that is, at least, tolerable – and perhaps even worthwhile.
1. Find out what the meeting organizer wants from the meeting.
If something is not worth doing, it is not worth doing well. (Read that again. It’s easy to misread.) Before you can decide if a meeting is worth ‘doing’, you must find out why the meeting organizer thinks the meeting is important. The only legitimate reason for a meeting (in my humble opinion) is to do something the participants cannot do separately. If it can be done without a meeting, don’t waste time in a meeting. No amount of planning and preparation will make an unnecessary meeting a good meeting. Remember also that if those involved in the meeting do not know why they are there, no amount of planning will make the meeting successful.
How do you find out why the meeting is being held? Call the meeting organizer and ask (nicely) for a 30-second version of what she wants from the meeting. I might even preface that question with a comment like “I’d like to make sure I’m prepared to contribute during the meeting and it’ll help if I understand what you would like the meeting to accomplish.”
What if the answer makes it clear there is no ‘real’ need for the meeting? Perhaps it’s time to call on your wonderful skills of tactful negotiation. It’s time to suggest other ways to do what the meeting organizer seeks to do.
If you agree that the meeting is important, knowing the organizer’s purpose will help you figure out how you can best contribute to the meeting. Once you know what she wants, you can help her get it.
You may also want to ask what she expects from you personally. If she can’t tell you in a few words, find a tactful and kind way to suggest that if she doesn’t know why you should be there, perhaps you are not needed. Are you needed for the entire meeting? Or can you be there for just part of it?
Finally, ask if there is any information you should give to others. Should you do it before the meeting? At the meeting? After?
2. If there’s a decision to be made, are the right people going to be there?
There are many reasons for meetings. Some are good; some are not. If the purpose of the meeting is to make a decision, that can happen only if the people needed to make the decision (1) are invited and (2) plan to attend. If not, a decision can’t be made. So why waste everyone’s time?
If the organizer set up the meeting electronically (a meeting invite in Outlook, for example), check to see who is invited. Is everyone who must approve a decision invited? If not, suggest they be added. The meeting organizer may have overlooked them or may not know they are needed. If they are invited but cannot attend, perhaps the meeting should wait until they can attend.
3. What do you want from the meeting.
Once you know what the meeting organizer wants from the meeting, decide what you want. Sure, you want to help the organizer achieve her goals. But perhaps you have matters you’re working on that are in harmony with the organizer’s goals. (If your goals for the meeting are not in harmony, you’re just a troublemaker. Find another forum to lobby for them – this meeting is neither the time nor the place to further your own agenda.)
Make a list of things you want to say and to talk about. When you get ready to bring them up in the meeting, do a final sanity check. Is this the right time and the right place? Will it be helpful? When in doubt, jot it down as an action item to take care of later.
If you are supposed to share information, get it ready now – even if it won’t be distributed until later. Should you deliver it electronically or in hard copy? Attach the documents to your computer or PDA calendar so you don’t have to hunt for it later.
4. Encourage an on-time start.
When the appointed time comes, if everyone is still chatting and milling around, suggest the meeting get started. Take the initiative. Others will appreciate you.
5. Record decisions and action items – and distribute them.
It’s amazing how rarely this is done. If there is no formal note taker, offer to do it yourself. Keep track of assigned action items, decisions made, and key information or questions that come up during the meeting. Later you won’t have to rack your brain to remember what you were supposed to do. If you share those notes with others, they will appreciate it. And remember, the person taking notes gets to decide what is important and what is not.
6. Encourage civility.
Most meetings are informal. No one brings a copy of Robert’s Rules of Order with them. But that doesn’t mean there can’t be some basic ground rules. If the meeting starts falling apart, it is not inappropriate to suggest everyone take a deep breath. Be a peacemaker. You can do it without being offensive (or even obvious). “Let me see if I understand what the different positions are. John is saying… Mary thinks… And Sam feels that…”
Chaos is often helpful. Much good can come from it – but it usually comes only after chaos gives way to order. Let it be you who herds the cats in the right direction when it’s time to move on.
7. Salvage something even when the meeting is a waste of time.
Everyone has been in meetings that are without redeeming value. No one wants to be there – often not even the meeting organizer. Think about meetings whose sole purpose is to convey information of one sort or another. Sure, maybe the temptation is there to break out the cell phone and text your friends or check your email. Maybe that would even be a good use of your time.
However, good things can come out of bad meetings. Can you use this time to develop relationships? Listen carefully to what others say. Are necessary questions not asked? Are others confused by the information presented? Can you say something that might clear up that confusion?
In short, even if it’s a waste of time (and you are there because you didn’t follow the first rule of finding out the purpose of the meeting and whether you are needed), can’t you still be a good citizen?
8. Help the meeting end on time
Don’t be the reason a meeting lasts longer than needed (or longer than it is scheduled). What should you do if it’s nearing the time when the meeting should end and you have agenda items that can’t be dealt with in the time that is left? Ask yourself if it’s best to try to do it in the time left? Or is it better to take it up another time? If you start a discussion you can’t finish in time and the meeting goes over, don’t expect others to be happy.
If the meeting is going over and you’re not the cause, help the organizer get to where he or she wants to be in the time that remains. Remember, you know the purpose of the meeting. “Sue, if I remember correctly, you wanted to…” Then you can say something like, “It sounds like we’re getting a little off track here” or “Would it help if we looked at…” or “Do we need to decide this issue so we can talk about…?”
9. Follow up on action items.
If you have been given specific things to do, add them to do your to-do list right away. Set a deadline.
If ‘action’ items were not assigned to specific individuals, are they something you want to take on. If so, talk with the meeting organizer. “We talked about doing … But I don’t remember hearing that assigned to anyone specific. Would you like me to handle it?” These are magic words every meeting organizer loves to hear!
10. Use the meeting to connect with others
Before the meeting, look at the people who will be there. Is there something you need to talk with them about? Questions that came up in another context? Something you’d like them to know about? Information you’d like to give them? Make a list. Check it twice. When you see them before the meeting starts, during breaks or after the meeting is over, whip out your list and take advantage of the opportunity.
Final Thoughts
Meetings do not have to be bad. In a future article we’ll offer some ideas about what you can do if you are the one organizing the meeting. Meanwhile, try some of these 10 ideas to make the meetings you attend more valuable – both to you and to others.
Do you have ideas on what you, as someone attending a meeting, can do to make it more worthwhile? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment.
Related articles from WalterBristow.com:
(1 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
Loading ...
