Starting a meeting may be uncomfortable because there might be chit-chat between coworkers about completely unrelated topics now that they’re all in the same room, that there are almost certainly holdouts and others who fail to call with well beyond the five-minute notice period. Someone will almost certainly neglect to read the document, someone will stay nervously in a hurry to get out the door, but someone will almost certainly lose their note book.
That’s why Oprah Winfrey starts each meeting with about the same three questions to elicit participation and establish specific goals: “How do we want to use this meeting? What matters the most? “What does it matter?”
Oprah begins each meeting with some of those questions, according to Brendon Burchard, writer of High Efficiency Behaviours: How Wonderful People Become Something Way. High achievers don’t get clarity; rather, they seek it, according to Burchard. As a result, they ask themselves the four research questions below on a regular basis:
- Self-description: How would you characterize your ideal image?
- Abilities: What abilities do you want to hone and demonstrate?
- Social situation: How would you like to act in social situations?
- Service: What kind of service do you want to offer?
They will concentrate by telling themselves certain questions. In the same way, posing questions at the start of a meeting will help members start focusing. Every day, 11 million organized company meetings are held in the United States itself. That suggests that each meeting must be relevant, and the plan should be concise and simple. “Select a start date for the commercial,” for instance. According to Burchard, there should be no “recap,” “analysis,” or “discussion.”
Meetings can be cut in half by sticking to a clear plan and starting on time. That’s significant because the amount of time workers spend in meetings has increased by about 10% each year since 2000, implying that the normal meeting lasts between 31 and 60 mins. While too many meetings are considered the greatest waste of time by 47% of Americans, they could be necessary to progress a task or company if they are positive and deliberate. If we don’t, it doesn’t just affect the people participating; we spend $37 billion a year on time which could be better spent.
“Do you have any information?” Before the conference, share it. Shouldn’t the group have the details they need weeks in advance whether they need to make a choice during a meeting? Send papers, reports, and other materials to members ahead of time. With Oprah’s three questions, you can be confident that your next company meeting will result in quick decisions.