Lead Great Meetings with Respect and Intent

Do you ever wonder “Why do we waste so much time in meetings?” Creating meetings that get results is a lot easier than you think.

The Agenda Illusion

Almost all meetings have agendas. What’s the purpose of an agenda? An agenda is a list of topics for the meeting. Although that seems like a sensible idea, most agendas are passive, shallow and misleading. They have no backbone. They are often so vague that people have secret pre-meetings to try to figure out what the agenda really means. Team members receive an agenda in an email and contact colleagues to ask, “Why do you think this is on the agenda? Is this about our project? Maybe we should get together and figure out a game plan before the meeting.” The problem with pre-meetings is they waste precious time and distract people from getting other things done. Things like their regular work stuff. To make matters worse, agenda topics can be unnerving and increase anxiety as team members wonder, “Why is this on the agenda?” and “Is this about something I did or didn’t do?”

In your next meeting instead of using an agenda think about what you want to achieve and how you’re going to get there. Instead of topics, focus on what you will accomplish to transform an agenda into an action plan. Here’s how:

1. Plan ahead to clarify your purpose. When you look at the agenda topic you wrote down ask yourself, why is this important? What’s my intention of raising this subject? What do I hope to achieve? Be exceedingly specific about your aims. The clearer you are the more you optimize the possibility of achieving your goal and helping others understand why it’s an appropriate subject for the meeting. Your team mates need to know what you want to accomplish and what you expect from them. Like thought precedes action, intention informs our purpose and plans. So it’s important to get clear about the intent of your meeting. In the planning stage, keep asking yourself, “What am I doing?” in order to bring yourself into the present moment. At work, it’s easy to slip into autopilot mode. When we are on autopilot, our patterned conditioning takes over and habits prevail. It’s something that naturally occurs to everyone; just recognize when you’ve fallen into habit mode and bring yourself back to the present moment with a deep breath and by saying “hello” to your task at hand.
2. Present your agenda topic as an action word. Use assertive, bold and results-centered words. Action words identify and define what you want to do about the topic. Do you want to solve a problem, brainstorm solutions, resolve a conflict, prioritize goals, discuss a new initiative, present a brief update, determine team member responsibilities, assign tasks, strategize how to meet customer expectations, or generate alternative strategies? Think about the goal and how you plan to get there. Without action words, meetings can feel disorganized and lack passion. We might show up to the meeting because we’re required to be there but without knowing what we’re supposed to accomplish, we lose interest and start thinking about our “real” work back on our desk. We all have other things to do.

Three things to remember for every meeting

When we are planning a project at the Institute of Respect, we like to keep in mind three things: attachment, good will, and harmlessness. If we are too attached to an idea or plan, we can lose sight of the bigger picture. It’s easy to feel defeated when you lose out on something you’re attached or gripping on to, so let it go! When it feels like you’re getting overly attached, remember that attachment usually comes with misperception and disappointment. In the spirit of good will, we truly want what’s best for the people we work side-by-side with and our clients. This intention yields the best work efforts. Finally, the tenet of harmlessness also encompasses compassion. The everyday use of knowledge and compassion supports our word endeavors and makes for happier, more respected colleagues.

By clarifying and communicating the intent of a meeting, you extend respect to your colleagues whose time, creativity, and work ethic is valuable resources. We all like to know what lies ahead so we can be prepared and know what is expected of us. Great meetings have foundations built on respect and intent and they focus on action and results. This combination of factors can be a great way to motivate others on your team.