Let’s not waste each other’s time

You've been on a call for an hour, focusing entirely on the topic at hand. You wave goodbye and press the red disconnect button. Then, you stop and think, Well, that was a waste of time. As the popular saying goes, That could have been an email, is all that's running through your mind. Sure, email might not be your preferred communication method, so substitute email for Slack, Google Chat, Teams, or text. One thing that is undeniable is that we waste a lot of time in meetings that could have been delivered in a far better way.

In a previous edition, back in September 2020, I wrote – Meetings, More Harm than Good. If you want to read that full article, I'd urge you to, as a lot of you might be able to relate to it. If not, here are my tips for demoting a meeting after working with dozens of companies to improve their digital operations.

Demoting a meeting

Most meetings are unnecessary. People often hold meetings for the sake of having them. This is most evident when you receive an invitation to a meeting that lacks an agenda. It becomes even more apparent when someone schedules a meeting using your scheduling link, and when prompted for a reason for the call, they respond with something vague like, "chat about things". If the meeting is merely a catch-up, that's fine, but when practical work should be accomplished, this approach doesn't benefit anyone.

To counteract this, downgrade all meetings without an agenda to another form of communication, or reschedule the meeting until either party can create a comprehensive agenda. I'm not exaggerating when I say comprehensive. It should cover everything that needs to be discussed. It should be detailed. Most importantly, it should provide enough context to ensure both parties are on the same page, making the discussion productive and the meeting an effective medium.

Adjust the duration of a meeting

When all the attendees have had the chance to contribute to a proper agenda, adjust the meeting duration to match. Always start with an overestimate – never longer than 45 minutes.

A meeting is cruel if it exceeds 45 minutes. Most people cannot concentrate that long, and it starts to become strenuous for a good portion of people. If the meeting is longer than 45 minutes, break it up, or make some of it another form of communication.

If possible, assign time durations for agenda items. Estimate in 5-minute durations, never exceeding 20 minutes per topic. Yes, that means a meeting might only be able to cover two topics.

Don't allow for bait and switches

You know these types of meetings. You cover your main agenda and then someone says, While I have you… No, no, no. If the agenda is covered and you want to socialize, fine. But if someone is sneaking in more topics, change the medium or schedule another meeting.

Change the medium

Meetings are great for collaboration, socializing, team building, and training. They are not good for status updates, asking questions at random, or picking someone's brain. I have mentioned this in the past, writing is thinking. By someone writing out the update or question, they can think it through or stumble across the answer. If writing is not the best medium for the topic, you can record a voice note or by far the best modern solution, record a Loom!

Loom offers the ability to record yourself and your screen simultaneously. You can show and tell. While I am not an AI fan, their latest AI features are extremely helpful with writing documentation and promoting meetings.

Update your meeting links

If you use a meeting scheduler, like Calendly, Cal.com (my favorite), or SavvyCal, make the agenda a required field. Make it known that the meeting can be cancelled if the agenda is not filled out exhaustively.

Most of you reading this are likely thinking, Yeah, sure, demote my meeting. While this may seem scary, it's the best experience for everyone; most people just don't know it yet. Help me start the trend of demoting meetings.