The Gauntlet
One client recently commented that he’s attending more meetings now than he previously did before the Covid shutdown, and it’s destroying his productivity. It’s a complaint I’m hearing more frequently.
When I asked if his concern was due to the higher number of meetings he’s being requested to attend, or because the meetings themselves were unproductive, he replied that both were issues for him. Time is an irreplaceable asset.
Deciding how much of your valuable time to invest in meetings is not always your choice, but when you can choose, asking yourself these questions can help determine if your participation is necessary. Will your input influence decisions made during or after the meeting? Will the information shared at the meeting motivate you or impact your ability to achieve your goals? Is your attendance mandated by your leader? Answering no to these questions should make you reconsider your attendance at the meeting.
What makes any meeting productive is the dialogue it generates among the participants. It’s this dialogue that enables the sharing of perspectives, the achievement of commitment, and the motivation to act. Meetings that cultivate dialogue are typically good time investments.
Sharing one-sided pronouncements, which don’t encourage dialogue, can be accomplished by an email or a posting…they don’t require meetings.
How frequently do you assess the value of the meetings you lead?
