How to make meetings more productive

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Entrepreneur and investor Ray Dalio shared the secrets of successful meetings.

1. Determine who is leading the meeting and for whom it is being held

Any meeting must achieve someone's goal. This is the person who should direct the conversation. He identifies the objectives of the meeting and how to solve them. Otherwise, everyone will speak out randomly, and there will be no productive discussion.

2. Decide what type of communication will prevail

The form of the meeting depends on the purpose of the meeting. For example, discussion and instructional lecture are conducted in different ways. Discussions take a long time. The more participants there are, the more they drag on. So choose your meeting attendees carefully.

Don't only invite those who agree with your opinion. Avoid both group thinking, when participants do not express their own opinions, and singular decision making.

3. Be persistent and open

You will have to manage conflicts, get out of deadlocks and manage time wisely. Difficulties usually arise when an inexperienced employee speaks. Weigh what is more important to you: save time without discussing his opinion, or understand how he thinks. The second option will help determine how a person will cope with certain responsibilities. If you have time, discuss with him where he is wrong. But always admit your own wrong.

4. Don't jump from one topic to another

So at the meeting not a single issue will be resolved. To avoid this, mark the conversation on the chalkboard.

5. Follow the logic of the conversation

During disputes, emotions run high and make it difficult to objectively perceive reality. Stay calm and rational. For example, people sometimes say, “I think it’s true,” and then act like it’s an established fact. Although their interlocutors see the situation in a completely different way. So that logic prevails in the conversation, and not emotions, ask such a person: "Is it really true?"

6. Distribute responsibilities of each participant

When decisions are made by a group, it is often forgotten to assign responsibilities. And then it is not clear who should do what and who is responsible. Be sure to clearly define the responsibilities of each member of the group decision.

7. Enter the rule of two minutes

Give everyone two minutes to calmly express their thoughts. And only then discuss his proposal. In this way, all participants will express their opinion without fear of being interrupted or misunderstood.

8. Stop Those Who Speak Too Fast

Fast speech is harder to understand. Some take advantage of this. People do not want to seem stupid and do not ask again, even if they do not understand something. Don't fall for this bait. It is your responsibility to clarify any ambiguities and resolve disputes. So don't be afraid to say, “Sorry, I didn't get it. Could you speak more slowly? And then ask the backlog of questions.

9. Summarize the conversation

If everyone exchanged ideas, draw conclusions. If you come to an agreement at the meeting, repeat it out loud. If not, say so too. If you have identified tasks for the future, distribute them among the participants and specify the deadlines.

Write down conclusions, working theories and problems so that everyone has access to them. This will make it easier to track progress.