Running meetings that don't drain you
First of all, should it be a meeting?
I found this cool website to help you answer that! Check out the cool flowchart that they have here https://shoulditbeameeting.com/#/
Let's slice a meeting
Slicing helps in not feeling overwhelmed about the overload of running a meeting. It also helps me put one foot in front of the other. I see the following as the three phases in meeting design:
Before
During
After
So what do these three phases entail?
Before
Before a meeting, I like to use IDOARRT (Thanks to Ike Breed for introducing this to the team at Mendix) while setting up a meeting myself. If it’s a colleague doing that and has approached me for help with setting it up, I walk them through these questions:
🎯 Intention and Desired Outcome: What is the intention of this meeting? What do you want out of this meeting?
📝 Agenda: What are the topics of discussion?
🦸 Roles: Who all should be there in the room and what will they contribute?
🛠 Rules: How will we engage during this meeting? Do we really need to record this - think of how to capture the session: Notes, Paper, Miro. Can participants read anything upfront?
⏳Time: How long should we keep this meeting? Prepare the topics and time per topic.
Once you have figured out why you want to have this meeting, share the IDOARRT in the meeting invite.
During
Here are some facilitation tips that you can use while running meetings.
☃️ Get everyone in the zone: Do a check-in; Start with a simple icebreaker or energizer
🎭 Set the stage: Go over the agenda; Who keeps time; Who takes notes; Discussion on the go or at the end?
🗣 Give everyone a chance to speak: Individual thinking activities; Encourage a colleague to share their opinion
⏰ Sometimes the topics might run over time: Remind the team and assess if it is worth it or if other agenda items are a priority
🎁 Wrap up: Summarise meeting, Remind action items, Decide next steps
Hyper Island Toolbox, Gamestorming Toolbox are some useful places to find meeting activities.
After
📔 Send meeting notes: Summarise; Share action items; Schedule follow up
🔁 Rotate meeting host (if possible): Keeps things fun; New perspective; Chance to learn
Conclusion
1. Good planning helps (at least me) in reducing meeting fatigue.
2. Slice the meeting. The more you prepare, the easier it gets.
3. Don't forget to have fun! 🥳
