What to do when meetings are a struggle

Do you struggle with meetings at work?

Many do, especially experts. Sometimes that’s a personal thing. Many introverts struggle with asking questions and many extroverts struggle with listening.

But sometimes it’s not you.

If you’re finding a meeting challenging, it could be the meeting itself. How to figure which is which? Answer two questions.

Should you be at the meeting and can the meeting succeed?

If the answer to either of those questions is negative, then no amount of soul-searching will help you. The meeting will no doubt be painful, frustrating, and a complete waste of your time. And unless you realise the problem is the meeting, you’ll probably think the problem is you.

Luckily, this is an easy challenge, because those questions tie together.

So, the next time you receive a meeting invite, ask yourself:

1. Is this meeting the best use of my time?

2. Do I have to go? (Hint: just because you were invited doesn’t make the answer ‘yes’.)

3. Do I want to go?

If the answers to those questions isn’t ‘yes’, then in most cases you’re better off not going — just say ‘no’.

If you decide to go — yes, it’s a decision — then work out whether the meeting can succeed. Three simple questions. Does the meeting have a clear purpose, the right people and the right approach?

If it doesn’t, then it’s likely the meeting will fail — and why are you going to a meeting that can’t succeed?

Read this post and more on my Typeshare Social Blog