“If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be ‘meetings’.”
– Dave Barry, Comedian
Can you relate?
We know our clients do… because they’ve called to ask how we can help.
Specifically, a client contacted 2Connect to find solutions for a weekly team meeting gone bad. While the gathering was dubbed a “weekly update,” in reality, team members just took turns delivering long activity reports…that our client then had to interpret. Was it good or was it bad? Were they on track or off track? Did they need anything from the team?
Here’s what we recommended. Have each team member consider these 3 questions in preparing for their weekly meeting.
- What is the essence of your update message? Bottom line, we are on track. Bottom line, we have 2 outstanding issues. Bottom line, we are behind goal by 2% but have a strategy to hit goal by Q2. That’s your update!
- How does your update impact the team? Will they benefit because of your update? Does it impact their projects? This is what gets them to care about – and listen to! – your update.
- What do you need your colleagues, team members, or manager to do? Do you need input? Support for a new direction? Not to worry because you got it all covered? If you need something, this is the time to let them know.
The result? The team hasn’t endured an activity report since.
Think about these 3 questions as you prepare for your next team meeting. Trust us, your team will thank you.
