A few of my favorite demotivators from Despair, Inc. are the ones describing the pointlessness of meetings, committees and teamwork:
Meetings. None of us is as dumb as all of us.
Teamwork. A few harmless flakes working together can unleash an avalanche of destruction.
Committees. Just like teamwork. Only without the work.
All sarcasm aside, the laughter in those statements belies an underlying truth about meetings. You’ve probably been a part of meetings that obscured the solution and created more, not less, confusion. If your meetings resemble those statements, then you’re not alone.
I have a confession to make. I’ve been a bad meeting leader. Whether it was meeting too long or too frequently, ending without a next step or attempting to do too much, a share of my meetings have been ineffective. But while I’ve made every mistake in the list below, I’m learning to make the right adjustments to become a good meeting leader.
Consider a few lessons that I’m learning:
So what’s the Big Idea?
Make the right adjustments to become a good meeting leader. Make staff meetings as much about motivating and encouraging people as about the meeting’s agenda. Be prepared and efficient, maintaining forward momentum. Encourage the team with a summary of what your meeting accomplished.
Resources
Sources
“Demotivators,” Accessed May 4, 2015, http://www.despair.com/demotivators.html.
“Say No to Meetings” by Andrea Murad, Fox Business (April 29, 2015), http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/2015/04/29/say-no-to-meetings/.
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