Musings | Better Meetings
“A meeting is an event at which the minutes are kept, and the hours are lost”
It is likely we have all had meetings that felt like lost hours of our lives – but it does not have to be that way. Now that all our meetings occur virtually, a long day of meetings has taken on new meaning and perhaps made us feel more fatigued. However, there is also an opportunity to explore different ways of doing things and perhaps breathe new life into the once dreaded meeting. Have a look below for ideas and options:
Mindful Meetings: Zoom has a checklist to support Mindful Meetings:
Ask “is this meeting necessary?” Only hold the meeting if:
i. You have a clear purpose or goal
ii. Collaboration and open discussion are essential to your goals
iii. You need to discuss complex or sensitive information
If you answered “no,” stop! Use email, messaging, or a phone call instead.
If you decide to go ahead with the meeting:
Inclusive Meetings: There is a great article from TED.com that outlines ways to have more inclusive meetings. The article contains 15 recommendations, all of them very helpful. We won’t outline all of them here today, but below are four you may not have thought of.
Finally, check out these 10 alternatives to Video Meetings
1. Write an email 6. Start a thread on chat or withing a project management tool
2. Send a direct message 7. Mark up a document
3. Record a video 8. Send out a survey
4. Create a ticket 9. Brainstorm on an online whiteboard (jam board is great)
5. Make a FAQ doc 10. Get on the phone
Resources & Sources
Resources and sources are embedded in the document above