On the subject of effective meeting planning and scheduling, the main thing to keep in mind is actually the planning itself. If you don’t plan it well, it won’t go well. This actually means that… You really shouldn’t over plan it, either. Rather, have an idea in mind, and then just get the meeting over and done with. If you try to plan out every single minute of the meeting, you won’t accomplish much, as breakthroughs don’t happen on a restrictive time frame.
So plan your meetings around just one or two goals or subjects, know what points you’re hoping to make during the meeting, and just leave it at that. Don’t write an itinerary, don’t try to solve every single problem the company has all at the same time, just keep a clear head on what you need to get done and let the meeting develop at its own pace. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you plan your next meeting.
Get Real
Are you really going to solve every single problem your company has in a single meeting? Of course not. Keep a meeting focused on ONE subject, not several. MAYBE two subjects, but only move on to the second after you’ve resolved the first. You need to make major decisions at these meetings, and the fewer the better, since you want the best decisions, not rush jobs. Know what you’re going to do and say at the meeting, and do it, don’t go nuts with it or you’ll be in the conference room for the rest of the week.
Stay Focused
Again, if you can’t stay focused, then you won’t accomplish anything. Set your sights on one, single goal, and work towards it. This keeps you and your people from getting confused or overwhelmed. Think of it like.. When you pay your bills, you write out each check or money order one at a time, you don’t try to write the electric with your left hand, the water with your right, and the phone and rent with your feet. Do one thing at a time.
Have The Meeting Sometime Around Noon
Or whenever the mid-day is for your business. You don’t want to do it in the morning or else you have loads of grumpy people who really don’t want to be here. After lunch, everyone gets slow and sluggish having just had big meals. Around the mid-day is when your people have had their coffee, they’ve woken up, and they’re ready to actually provide their own strategies while at the same time listening during the meeting, as opposed to just zoning out looking forward to their first cup of joe.
