5 Tips for Better Meetings | Video

You’re a Project Manager. So, I can predict one thing with confidence… You spend a lot of time in meetings. This means that anything you can do to have better meetings is a worthwhile change.

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Less Wasted Time = Better meetings

Perhaps you need to think about how best to minimize wasted meeting time. Spend less time in meetings, and get more value from the time you do spend.

And, spend is the right word

We spend time to get something in return. The question is, will it be cheap, unnecessary tat, or valuable life-enhancing commodities? Here are a few small tips that can make a big difference

1. Schedule meetings for 25, 50, or 80 minutes (instead of 30, 60, or 90).
   The shorter time won’t impact what you get done. It will bring more focus, and let you get to your next meeting on-time, without rushing.
2. Check at the start whether anyone has any pressing business they need to share, before starting the planned agenda.
   If they have, then you can decide what to do. That’s better than having them feeling distracted.
3. Meetings are about two things: content and mood.
   Spend as much time observing behaviors and reading the moods of the people in the room as you spend paying attention to the content. This will give you some deeper insights into what is said – and what is not said.
4. Sometimes meetings reach consensus quickly and easily.
   Pheww.
   But is this just a case of everyone opting out of a tough discussion that is uncomfortable and inconvenient? Sometimes it is worth holding out for a deeper conversation. You may uncover the awkward facts and figure out what they are telling you.
5. If a meeting is worth attending, it is worth following-up on.
   Schedule time shortly after the meeting to review your notes, follow-up on actions, and consider what you learned. I hope you would always prepare for a meeting. So, you should always postpare too.

Recommended Videos

Carefully curated video recommendations for you:

Better Meetings: Understanding how they work

• The Rule of Silence: The Free Source of Power in a Meeting
• Meeting Actions: How to get People to do Them
• The Five Stages of a Meeting

Better Meetings: Specific Types of Meeting

• How to Run a Great Project Team Meeting
• How to Hold a Daily Stand-up Meeting
• Lessons Learned Meeting: How to Make it Excellent

What Kit does a Project Manager Need?

I asked Project Managers in a couple of forums what material things you need to have, to do your job as a Project Manager. They responded magnificently. I compiled their answers into a Kit list. I added my own. 

Check out the Kit a Project Manager needs

Note that the links are affiliated.

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