Back-to-back meetings crush souls

Folks have lots of meetings these days. A lot of those meetings are bad meetings. Bad meetings crush souls.

Somehow we have inherited and/or allowed some absolutely dreadful meeting practices to become commonplace.

This blog post is part of my action to raise awareness of some bad meeting habits, with some suggested tips to make things better.

Back-to-back meetings are horrible. Who said that was ok or reasonable? Why do we all put up with it?

Most people start and end meetings on the hour/half-hour.

The more meetings you are involved in, the more likely you are to be in back-to-back meetings.

This practice introduces needless stress.

One meeting overruns, so you’re late for the next one. Being late is terrible way to start a meeting.

Or you arrive just in time, flustered and stressed…that’s not a smart way to start a meeting, either.

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a few minutes between meetings?

Maybe to write up action points from previous meeting?
Maybe to mentally prepare for the next meeting?
Maybe get a drink? Walk around? Use the bathroom? Stretch? Breathe?

Stop scheduling meetings to start/end on the hour/half-hour, make a buffer of protected space, examples:
Start: 09:05 & End: 9:55.
Start: 11:05 & End: 11:25.

I am sure most folks will be more productive (and happier) in three, spaced, fifty minute meetings, than three back-to-back 60 minute meetings.

Protip: Ask the folks who host meetings in your life, if they can stop scheduling start/end on the hour/half-hour.

Cheers,

Simon
Happiness Nurturer