Mini
Instead, try and decide how long a meeting should last solely on the basis of what you need to accomplish. No fluff. No 'just in case' attitude. And inform everyone that the meeting will end on time, no matter what and stick to it.
Tech billionaire and "Shark" investor Mark Cuban says he hates meetings.
And here's the reason why: "Think about the last meeting you held. Add up the hourly rates of everyone in the room. Then factor in the opportunity cost for what every person could have been achieving instead of sitting in that room. Then factor in what you could have been doing."
So when you actually hold a meeting, to make decisions, set expectations, assign responsibility - in short when the meeting has a true purpose, remember to keep these things in mind:
Even if you only need 10 minutes to finish off a meeting, you cannot really do it as you have scheduled it for 30 minutes. And then there is always the 'just in case' factor. We'll already have everyone together, so let's schedule a little extra time, just in case.
Instead, try and decide how long a meeting should last solely on the basis of what you need to accomplish. No fluff. No 'just in case' attitude. And inform everyone that the meeting will end on time, no matter what and stick to it.
It will be tough in the beginning but eventually, people will adapt to the change and be more focussed and productive.
Holding a meeting to share information is unproductive and wastes everyone's time.
"Don't let people muse aloud about the half-baked concepts they want to share just because they feel they have to participate, or because they want to seem smart."
"Never let ownership be fuzzy or unclear. An action item without a clear owner is like an orphan -- it's someone else's responsibility."
"If you like, the people responsible can send progress emails to the rest of the group. But don't get the group together just so everyone else can hear about what's been done."
Meet again when a further decision needs to be made regarding the same or when you have to celebrate the success upon the completion of the task.
As a team leader or the head of an organisation, it is your job to build a productive team and let your employees establish an interpersonal relationship on their own time.