Is there anything that employees collectively hate more than unnecessary or unproductive meetings? It doesn’t matter where you are on the corporate ladder – we’ve all dreaded a meeting at some point in our career.
I’ve had my fair share of meetings I didn’t want to go to – and for a variety of reasons. There have been times where I just felt tired and was worried I wouldn’t be at the top of my game, and also moments where I just really didn’t want to sit in for a meeting that I knew would yield little result. But I think the most common thing I’ve experienced with everybody else is that sometimes meetings can just be…soul-sucking.
I mean, you’re sitting in a chair for over an hour, fading in and out and wondering “Couldn’t this whole meeting just have been an email?” And it’s upsetting for both sides – people listening to the meeting are bored, and people leading the meeting are frustrated they can’t get everyone on the same page.
As someone who’s been on both ends, I’ve picked up a few rules on how leaders can make meetings more effective and engaging for everyone involved.
1) Have a Purpose and Communicate It Clearly
You’re probably groaning right now, because you’ve probably heard all that motivational purpose-driven stuff in an article that was supposed to be about meetings. But hear me out – you really do need to have a purpose when it comes to meetings.
What does this mean?
Having a purpose just means knowing why you’re there. Meetings sometimes fail to be engaging because people don’t understand the rationale for having to sit in a chair for a few hours when, as mentioned earlier, things could’ve just been written in an email. But this problem effectively goes away when you immediately establish why everybody needs to be there, and what makes this particular meeting essential to productivity, clarity and making progress in reaching key objectives.
If you can’t identify what makes a meeting important and clearly explain why everyone’s presence is needed, then maybe it really should’ve been an email. But if you can get everybody on the same page, then it only leads to meetings where everyone can start organising and getting the necessary work done right away.
Furthermore, it’s important to note that “having a purpose” – even just in a motivational sense – isn’t necessarily a bad idea (as cliché as this might sound). If you’re speaking to boost morale and inspire others, especially when you think the team needs it, then by all means！
2) Stay Focused
I remember being in a meeting once, where a female colleague was presenting simple figures. At one point, her PowerPoint slide had the typo “your” instead of “you’re.” Right away, two male colleagues immediately jumped at her for her oversight and started driving the meeting into a whole new direction.
I hate it when meetings get extended because of petty stuff like this. Too often, participants in meetings get sidetracked by unnecessary comments that just lead to people dissecting miniscule details that the entire room forgets the original reason for being there. As a leader, it’s your job to make sure that people don’t get too pedantic but focus on the matter at hand.
I admit that sometimes it’s important to fixate on a point, and even I get tempted to speak over people and correct them right away. But we have to remind ourselves that there are bigger, overarching things that the meeting needs to accomplish, and devoting time to trivial things is exactly what causes drawn-out or even drama-filled meetings.
When you are able to stay focused, you can keep other people focused too. So, trust your gut, and know when it’s time to step in and start realigning everybody. That is, after all, what meetings should always be about.
3) Learn to Listen
When I was still starting out in my career, I used to be a little shy in giving my input, so meetings were never really my strong suit. To me, it made sense to stay silent and get out of the meeting as fast as possible, since nobody asked for my opinions anyway.
While this was an efficient way to survive a meeting, those small instances of me refusing to speak my mind ended up compounding as I found myself a little lost with the tasks I had to do after. Luckily enough, at the next meeting, one of my new superiors was very welcoming and actively volunteered me for my opinions and thoughts. It was when I started seeing the value of sharing my thoughts and suggestions that I gained more confidence in participating and engaging with the meeting.
If you find people not saying anything while you’re presenting, then maybe those people were in the same position that I was. Maybe they just simply don’t feel their opinions have any value. Now this could be due to a number of reasons, but one of the biggest could be that the same few are often hogging the conversation.
This is why it’s important to listen. Make sure to ask people for their feedback and perspectives and have everyone participate in some small way. When people feel they’re able to get a point across, not only do they become more engaged in their discussions or work in general, you also have more great ideas to work with. So, make sure you listen, encourage more inclusive conversations, empower others, and speak primarily to contribute and further discussion. This way, you can get everybody on the same page and ready to conquer a meeting together.
To your success,
Mario
[Visit www.mariosingh.com now to enjoy a FREE e-book of my latest “37 Essential Principles for Massive Success” when you subscribe!]
