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Here's a framework I'm using to rethink meetings and productivity, as this is a struggle we're universally experiencing.
A thread:
A thread:
1. First acknowledge that you, and you alone, are responsible for defending your time.
NO ONE ELSE is going to defend your time for you.
Just as we "Secure your own mask first before assisting others" - defend your time first, then defend your team's.
NO ONE ELSE is going to defend your time for you.
Just as we "Secure your own mask first before assisting others" - defend your time first, then defend your team's.
2. Meetings should be short, focused, and few.
Keep *very few* standing meetings.
This process helped set up much better work flow this year- https://twitter.com/amandaorson/status/1339925478069702657
Keep *very few* standing meetings.
This process helped set up much better work flow this year- https://twitter.com/amandaorson/status/1339925478069702657
3. Require an agenda prior to meetings.
No agenda = no meeting.
Every meeting must have a purpose.
In @joulee's excellent book "The Making of a Manager" she outlines the most common meeting types:
- Decision-making
- Informational
- Feedback Meeting
- Idea Generation
No agenda = no meeting.
Every meeting must have a purpose.
In @joulee's excellent book "The Making of a Manager" she outlines the most common meeting types:
- Decision-making
- Informational
- Feedback Meeting
- Idea Generation
4. Decision-making meetings are especially valuable.
"Do you remember the last time you were in a meeting and someone said, “We’re going to make this decision before we leave the room”? How great did that feel? Didn’t you just want to hug that person?" https://firstround.com/review/speed-as-a-habit/
"Do you remember the last time you were in a meeting and someone said, “We’re going to make this decision before we leave the room”? How great did that feel? Didn’t you just want to hug that person?" https://firstround.com/review/speed-as-a-habit/
5. Most "informational" meetings should be emails - particularly while we're all in video-only meeting environments.
Two notable exceptions would be all hands standup meetings or board meetings.
Two notable exceptions would be all hands standup meetings or board meetings.
6. Meetings are insanely expensive, especially if you are involved.
After every meeting - ask yourself https://twitter.com/amandaorson/status/1328734070457634821
After every meeting - ask yourself https://twitter.com/amandaorson/status/1328734070457634821
7. The cost to others, especially your "makers" (whether that's engineering, copywriters, technicians etc) will become a bottom-line cost.
Not just for the time you've involved them in the meeting - but the aggregate total of the task-switching, too.
And it compounds.
Not just for the time you've involved them in the meeting - but the aggregate total of the task-switching, too.
And it compounds.
"even brief mental blocks created by shifting between tasks can cost as much as 40 percent of someone's productive time."
https://www.apa.org/research/action/multitask
If you're not being efficient and protecting your team's time, you're wasting a lot of time and money.
https://www.apa.org/research/action/multitask
If you're not being efficient and protecting your team's time, you're wasting a lot of time and money.
8. If you/ your team are individual contributors accountable to OKRs and your calendars are stuffed with meetings tangential or irrelevant to them - you're setting up one of 2 outcomes:
- missed OKRs
- burnout, poor mental health and disrupting you/ your employees home lives
- missed OKRs
- burnout, poor mental health and disrupting you/ your employees home lives
9. To protect time and ensure you WILL hit goals without burning your team (or yourself) out:
- Use asynchronous communication (Slack, Loom)
- Encourage them to "batch" tasks (like Slack or Email replies)
- Try to limit, and ideally batch, the meetings they are involved in
- Use asynchronous communication (Slack, Loom)
- Encourage them to "batch" tasks (like Slack or Email replies)
- Try to limit, and ideally batch, the meetings they are involved in
- Schedule in "maker" time and tie it to working on one of your goals/ KRs
A recent hack I've discovered for "maker time" - literally make it Out of Office on your calendar.
People love to schedule over "Work Time". Cure this bad habit by auto-declining it with an OOO block.
A recent hack I've discovered for "maker time" - literally make it Out of Office on your calendar.
People love to schedule over "Work Time". Cure this bad habit by auto-declining it with an OOO block.
10. And if nothing else struck you -
https://twitter.com/amandaorson/status/1301574959794466821
We're all juggling a ton of screen time right now. If you're not going to show - give people at least 24 hrs notice.
https://twitter.com/amandaorson/status/1301574959794466821
We're all juggling a ton of screen time right now. If you're not going to show - give people at least 24 hrs notice.
11. Invite your team to leave at any time.
“Walk out of a meeting or drop off a call as soon as it is obvious you aren’t adding value. It is not rude to leave, it is rude to make someone stay and waste their time.” https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/18/elon-musks-productivity-rules-according-to-tesla-email.html
“Walk out of a meeting or drop off a call as soon as it is obvious you aren’t adding value. It is not rude to leave, it is rude to make someone stay and waste their time.” https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/18/elon-musks-productivity-rules-according-to-tesla-email.html
