Did a friend send this to you? First, I hope you thanked them. Second, subscribe to this newsletter here.

Career Advice: Get Really Good at Running Meetings

If you haven’t figured it out by now, we’re here to give you tips and tricks to not only help you better navigate the workplace but to sharpen your skills so you stand out above the rest.

Today we have a skill that 100% of workers would say is valuable but only 10% of people really take the time to develop. We’re talking about running a kick ass productive meeting.

According to the Harvard Business Review, 71% of professionals think their meetings are unproductive and a recent study by Microsoft found that the average worker spends 23 hours a week in meetings.

That’s a lot of people and time and we are in physical pain just thinking about it. So let’s get you in the top 10% shall we?

Here are 5 tips you can start using tomorrow to make you the best at running a kick ass productive meeting.

1. Make a Map: AKA an agenda (doesn’t map sound cooler?) and send it out as early as possible, no later than 24 hours before the meeting. Give people the opportunity to prepare and prioritize their day. This requires preparation on your part. The most important thing about a well-timed agenda is that it is respectful of other people’s time. If you don’t send a well-timed agenda, you are indirectly communicating that you don’t respect other people’s time. Who wants that?!

2. Start by Letting People Speak: If you don’t speak within the first 10 minutes of a meeting, you’re likely to not speak at all. You will get a better outcome if all voices are heard, so create a space for people to chat in the first few minutes — let people be people. Intentionally engage people who are less likely to speak up to get them contributing early.

3. Be Explicit About the Why: At the start of the meeting, clearly outline the objectives — why are we here and why the outcome is important.

4. Keep Time: Assign specific time slots for each agenda item and watch the clock. If you go over time on a topic that is key to the objective, let the conversation keep going. You have to be adaptable but keep the objective at the forefront of your mind. Point people back to the map and let the objective be your compass.

5. Endings Matter: The way a meeting ends is just as important as how it begins. Conclude with a review of the original objective, whether the objective was met, what decisions were made and assign specific action items with deadlines. If committed action items are not completed your meeting becomes retroactively pointless. It’s harsh, but true.

We all lament too many meetings that are not a good use of our time. You have an opportunity to be a part of the solution. Just think of how many meetings you can transform if you keep these standards and hold your team members accountable for doing so as well. Level up your team by sending this to them here.

Let’s raise the bar for how we spend nearly 50% of our workweek, shall we?

Poll:

Tell Me Somethin’good:

Noah Lyles is our N’good highlight of the week. He carried the weight of the world’s expectations for Gold in the men’s 200m event after winning Bronze in Tokyo. He had an amazing photo-finish in the 100m final and then he came down with COVID-19. After following all the health and safety guidelines, he decided to still race and earned himself another Bronze Medal.

Noah’s journey in Paris is a great reminder that we can put in the hard work but sometimes things don’t work out like we’d hoped.

The opportunity to chase our dream can still bring us joy even if our accomplishments at the end aren’t quite what we envisioned.

Noah Lyles, Olympic Medalist and an inspiring leader.

Resources Worth Your Click

☕️ We have a travel hack for all of our coffee lovers out there. These instant coffee packs are life savors on the road. Or when you are just feeling super lazy at home. 😬 

📖 We are reading Lucy Foley’s latest The Midnight Feast and staying up way too late because we can’t put it down.

🎵 Back to School Hype Playlist, crowdsourced by educators.

🤤 We’re obsessed with this Sweet Chili Salmon Sushi Bake recipe.

🎒 A 90-day learning cohort experience on Adaptive Leadership. Join the waitlist here. 

Quote of the Week:

Follow us on Instagram 📷

Connect with us on Linkedin 🔗 Kenna & Brooke