I have to admit to a bias. I am driven to maximize the value of every meeting I can. By that, I mean that I want everyone who attends a meeting to think their time was well spent, and that something of substance got done.
My preference may seem like a no-brainer, but believe me, not everyone seems to agree.
This became more clear to me when I was talking to an official recently about a public meeting I found to be disappointing. His reaction was surprise. From his perspective the meeting was intended to provide a public forum for a group of people, and it did that. The value of the meeting, in his mind, was more like a transaction. “We promised we would have the meeting, and we did.” Check and check.
But for me, the potential value — gathering people together and engaging in an authentic dialog about subjects of public interest — was not realized. When this happens, people leave disillusioned, believing their time was wasted and unwilling to invest more time in future meetings.
The fact is, we experience low-value meetings like this every day, in every environment. We schedule meetings by habit, attend them by rote and leave them dissatisfied and disillusioned. The potential of nearly every meeting is not realized — sometimes not even recognized.
On the rare occasions when true potential is realized, its a bit of a shock.
It doesn’t have to be this way. It is possible to transform meetings in ways that release this potential. Michele gives a few great tips in her blog post How to Plan a Great Meeting.
But before we can improve our meetings, we first have to notice the lost potential and decide to do something about it.
So, for the next week, I challenge you to notice the meetings you attend. How many come close to realizing their potential?
Then, pick one that really matters to you, one that has potential to change something you care about. Ask the questions that Michele poses. Think about the purpose of the meeting, the potential that the attendees represent and how the process could be changed to release that potential.
Then take a deep breath, raise your hand and start a revolution.
