Dear community, meetings, whether online or on-site, are still a common part of our work. In my view, they are also a necessary part if you don’t overdo it.
Steve Jobs is said to have classified meetings as productivity killers as early as the 1980s. Meetings were not generally a thorn in his side, but rather they should be short (e.g. 10 minutes) and goal-oriented.
I can only support setting a clearly defined meeting goal. It is worth thinking in advance about the nature of the meeting, what you want to achieve and structure it accordingly. At the beginning of a meeting, you should tell the participants the goal so that they know how they can get involved. All of this contributes significantly to success.
Below are a few typical types of meetings that differ in their nature. The distinction is made based on various aspects, for example whether participants should just listen (passive) or get involved (active). Here is the list:
- Share information
- Solve a problem
- Make a decision
- Plan together
- Work together on innovations
- Get to know each other
- Celebrate a special occasion
Using this list, you can think about the reason for the meeting before the meeting. This is exactly what you should communicate to the participants – in the invitation, at the beginning of the meeting and also at the end in the summary.
Have fun and success in the next meeting
Michael