Greetings 2023 and all the meetings and “to do” lists just waiting for you to complete and celebrate!

As we begin a new year, another divine message came to me recently that I immediately knew I had to use and share. You know we always say coaching does take time but everything else take more time! Yes, we all need to find more time and the best way is to use what we have in the most productive way.

My divine message was for all of us who go to meetings. Two things scientists tell us about meetings: 1) a good meeting has an agenda 2) an agenda alone is not enough to run an effective meeting. New research from Harvard shows that effective meetings are outcome-centric, not process-centric. Rather than starting with the agenda, think about the meeting’s desired outcome. Once you know the outcome you hope to achieve, it will then guide every other aspect of planning and running the meeting.

Harvard identified five steps that will help prepare for an outcome-driven meeting – without falling into the agenda trap of a false sense of accomplishment and save that precious time!

1. Start with the why: What is the specific purpose of having this meeting? What do you hope to accomplish? Your answer to this question will inform how you approach the remaining four steps, so it’s worth putting some thought into this important step.
2. Move on to the what: To achieve the goal you’ve defined, will a simple freeform discussion be enough? If, yes, then your preparation is done. If not, list out the topics or themes you will need to cover.
3. Think about the who: Once you know why you’re meeting and what you hope to talk about, you can determine who you need in the room to reach that goal – and who doesn’t need to be there. Consider whether you can check in with certain stakeholders in advance, both to save them time and keep the meeting more focused.
4. Don’t overdo the how… and
5. Be careful with the when…

We will address the last two in our next ezine. Four and five will dig deeper into the type of goals and being mindful of timing. You know, timing is everything.

Given all the demands you as leaders and our wonderful teachers and staff have, what a fabulous New Year’s gift – meetings that are productive, efficient, and accomplish goals! More next time and RCG’s own experience with this new idea.

Reference: Harvard Business Review: Is Agenda Theater Ruining Your Meetings? 10-2022