Other people's meetings are a waste of time

Have you noticed that it’s only other people’s meetings that are a waste of time?

We lament having them, but we’re the ones calling them. Meetings are up 13% since the pandemic, largely due to distributed teams. 

There are lots of ideas about how to make meetings better, from having an agenda (rare) to limiting the number of attendees.

Here’s a reality check when it comes to meetings. 

• People are often back-to-back in meetings, so the idea they will pre-read an agenda (let alone prepare properly) is wishful thinking.
• People get invited for political rather than constructive reasons, so you can end up with too many of the wrong people in the room.
• People think they can multitask and fiddle with their phones while staying engaged, but that’s impossible. Presence doesn’t make you present. 
• People feel threatened if they don’t get invited because they worry about being kept out of the loop. Injured pride can lead them to diminish the project because they are not involved.
• Senior people can often feel too important to attend. They think they deserve special treatment.

This quagmire has an influencing skills requirement written all over it, don’t you think?