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<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

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<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and goalagiving. This

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<v Speaker 1>is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul Fellavledo.

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<v Speaker 2>Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.

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<v Speaker 2>It's episode four sixty six. Today we're going to talk

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<v Speaker 2>about one of the most dreaded, time consuming, and often

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<v Speaker 2>mismanaged parts of leadership meetings. I'm basing this episode on

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<v Speaker 2>Steven Rogelberg's book, The Surprising Science of Meetings. It's an

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<v Speaker 2>eye opening look at what really makes meetings work and

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<v Speaker 2>more importantly, what makes them a complete waste of time.

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<v Speaker 2>If you're a leader, you already know the truth. Meetings

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<v Speaker 2>are the single most visible expression of your leadership. People

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<v Speaker 2>may forget the details of your last email, but they

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<v Speaker 2>will absolutely remember whether your meetings are productive, respectful, and

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<v Speaker 2>worth their time, or whether they drain the life out

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<v Speaker 2>of everyone in the room. So Rogelberg's research revealed some

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<v Speaker 2>staggering statistics. For example, employees believe that around fifty percent

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<v Speaker 2>of the time they spend in meetings is wasted. That means,

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<v Speaker 2>if you're running meetings badly, you're not just wasting minutes

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<v Speaker 2>you're wasting morale, energy, and productivity. So what's the fix.

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<v Speaker 2>The book lays out several strategies that I think every

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<v Speaker 2>leader should know and apply. So let's break down some

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<v Speaker 2>of the most powerful ones. First, not every meeting needs

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<v Speaker 2>to happen. One of the biggest takeaways from this book

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<v Speaker 2>is that leaders often use meetings as a default solution.

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<v Speaker 2>Something comes up and the instinct is to call a

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<v Speaker 2>meeting instead. Leaders should ask is this issue better solved

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<v Speaker 2>with a quick phone call, in email or a one

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<v Speaker 2>on one conversation. Canceling unnecessary meetings is not a sign

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<v Speaker 2>of week leadership, it's a sign of respect for your

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<v Speaker 2>team's time. Second, if you do need a meeting, shorten it.

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<v Speaker 2>The science shows that the length of the meeting often

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<v Speaker 2>has little to do with its effectiveness. In fact, shorter

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<v Speaker 2>meetings often produce better engagement. A fifteen minute stand up

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<v Speaker 2>meeting can sometimes accomplish more than a one hour roundtable,

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<v Speaker 2>and Parkinson's law tells us that work expands to fill

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<v Speaker 2>the time available. So if you give yourself sixty minutes,

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<v Speaker 2>the discussion will stretch. If you give yourself twenty, you'll

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<v Speaker 2>get right to the point. Third clarity beats complexity. Rogelberg

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<v Speaker 2>emphasizes the importance of a clear agenda, but not the

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<v Speaker 2>old school agenda where you list topics. Instead, create an

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<v Speaker 2>agenda that focuses on questions to be answered or decisions

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<v Speaker 2>to be made. For example, instead of writing budget discussion, right,

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<v Speaker 2>what decision do we need to make today about next

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<v Speaker 2>quarter's budget allocations? That little shift in wording creates energy

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<v Speaker 2>and urgency. Fourth, invite Wisely, one of the reasons meeting

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<v Speaker 2>spiral is because too many people are invited. Leaders sometimes

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<v Speaker 2>think inclusivity means putting everyone in the room, but what

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<v Speaker 2>ends up happening is you've got people sitting there who

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<v Speaker 2>don't need to be there, and they know it. Rogelberg

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<v Speaker 2>argues that fewer people equals better discussion. If you're not

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<v Speaker 2>essential to the decision, you don't need to be in

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<v Speaker 2>the room. Fifth, engagement is a leader's responsibility. If you're

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<v Speaker 2>running a meeting, you own the energy. Rogelberg points out

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<v Speaker 2>that many people check out because they don't feel included.

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<v Speaker 2>Leaders can fix this by intention only drawing in quiet voices,

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<v Speaker 2>rotating who speaks first, or even switching up formats. Remember

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<v Speaker 2>the loudest voice in the room doesn't always have the

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<v Speaker 2>best idea. In sixth, don't let meetings drift. Every meeting

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<v Speaker 2>needs a clear ending, summarize the decisions made, sign responsibilities,

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<v Speaker 2>and outline next steps. One of the most damaging ship

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<v Speaker 2>mistakes is letting meetings end in a fog. People walk

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<v Speaker 2>out thinking different things, which creates confusion, frustration, and rework.

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<v Speaker 2>Your job is the leader is to make sure there's

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<v Speaker 2>alignment before anyone leaves. Now here's the big leadership takeaway.

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<v Speaker 2>The way you run meetings is the way your people

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<v Speaker 2>will interpret your leadership. If your meetings are long, disorganized,

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<v Speaker 2>and pointless, your leadership looks the same. But if your

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<v Speaker 2>meetings are sharp, purposeful, and respectful of time, your leadership

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<v Speaker 2>looks disciplined, for paired, and decisive. So Steve Rogelberg's book

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<v Speaker 2>doesn't just point out the flaws, it gives you a playbook.

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<v Speaker 2>Here's three practical steps you can take right now. Number one,

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<v Speaker 2>audit your meetings for the next month. Ask yourself which

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<v Speaker 2>of these could be cut in half or cut altogether.

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<v Speaker 2>Number two, rewrite your next agenda into questions instead of topics.

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<v Speaker 2>And number three, at the end of each meeting, clearly

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<v Speaker 2>state here's what we decided, here's who owns it, and

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<v Speaker 2>here's what's next. So this is a fantastic book and

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<v Speaker 2>I encourage you to consider reading it. Meetings are necessary,

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<v Speaker 2>but not all meetings need to look the same and

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<v Speaker 2>run the same. This is the surprising science of meetings.

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<v Speaker 2>Meetings don't have to be hated. They can be powerful,

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<v Speaker 2>inspiring and efficient, but it requires you to read, think

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<v Speaker 2>how you run them, and remember your team will never

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<v Speaker 2>complain that you respected their time too much. This has

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<v Speaker 2>been the seven Minute Leadership podcast and I thank you

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<v Speaker 2>for listening.

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<v Speaker 1>For more Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.