I’m excited to announce that my first book, Why Your Meetings Suck, will be released tomorrow for FREE! Here’s a short teaser from the introduction to explain what the book’s about and why I wrote it. Be sure to listen to the podcast tomorrow and sign up for emails by subscribing to get your copy of my new eBook!
It’s funny how many people have told me they are excited about the release of this book. Why would anyone look forward to a book about meetings? Simple. People spend a lot of time in meetings, and they want them to be…better. Or, maybe they just want to rid their lives of them altogether.
We all know our work lives will never be meeting-free, but we can eliminate the bad ones while making the ones we do have more effective. All it takes is a little thought and planning, and it’s my goal to show you exactly how to make it happen!
Sucky Meetings
For years I’ve taught leaders how to lead their teams, entrepreneurs how to run their businesses, and team members how to be excellent in the ordinary. They all have one common gripe – meetings that suck. They find themselves stuck in these rambling, unorganized time-wasters that take them away from work they actually need to do.
Sucky meetings give all meetings a bad reputation. Most people would rather take care of the mountain of work they already have – you know, actually get something done.
That’s why I wanted to write this book. To show you you’re not doomed to a career of sucky meetings. You truly can have productive meetings. Meetings that change the way you do business, and ultimately allow you to accomplish more every day.
The Cost of Wasted Time
The ideas in this book aren’t just for you. As you read, think about how you can share them with your team. If you’re in leadership, share them with other leaders in your company. If you’re a team member, share them with your company’s leadership to try and get them on board as well.
If your company eliminates its sucky meetings, you’ll save time and money, not just through increased productivity, but through improved morale as well.
Think about it: When you walk out of a bad meeting, you’re frustrated. You’re asking yourself (and maybe others), “Why in the world did we just have that meeting? That was an absolute waste of time.”
Your team is no different. Sucky meetings are a morale-buster for everyone. And I truly believe when morale is low, your team is only half as productive.
For those of you focused on the bottom line, take a minute to calculate the time your team spends each week on meetings, and then calculate the payroll you spend during those meetings. The amount in an average business is stunning!
For all these reasons, you have to ask yourself, “Why do I put up with sucky meetings?”
Many years ago, I was at a nonprofit board meeting. The committee chair and co-chair ARGUED about the color of copy paper for over 45 minutes! No one else had an input opportunity. Much time was wasted. Morale plummeted. Maybe most importantly, the color didn’t matter at all.
Too bad there’s not a Ph.D. for meetings!
– Rebecca Henderson from the #CLoTribe
Awesome, looking forward to it
Thanks David!
Sounds like a great topic. I’ve been considering freshening up on the book, “Pocket Mentor: Running Meetings.” I’m looking forward to your information on meetings.
I haven’t read that. Good read?
Oh yeah, very good. It’s a short read with tons of relevant information. And most importantly, very little fluff. I recommend it. I think I found it at a book sale.
Oh yeah, very good. It’s a short read with tons of relevant information. And most importantly, very little fluff. I recommend it. I think I found it at a book sale
Oh yeah, very good. It’s a short read with tons of relevant information. And most importantly, very little fluff. I recommend it.
Thanks Adam!
Love it and use it!
Another good one from years ago Death by Meeting by Patrick Lencioni. But, I’m looking forward to reading Chris’s!
Looking forward to your perspective on this topic.
Thanks Fon!
Whoahoo! I can’t wait!
Haha…I’ll take that! Thanks Nick
great teaser! Looking forward to it!
Hey Jill Boorman! I hope you like it.
Worst meetings ever were 90% of the meetings in my last organization where my supervisor would have to look through 5 different pads of paper to find the one important word he wanted to pass & where his lack of agenda would cause meetings to go on for three hours. There is many a wasted hour from my time there that I can never get back.
I hate to hear that! That is so why I wrote this. I had to. 🙂
Can’t wait!
Thanks!
Loved seeing my quote!
Thanks for giving it Rebecca!
You are a star!!!
Can’t wait to read your insights!
Will it be in epub format?
Thank you!
Giuseppe – Italy
It sure will Giuseppe! Where in Italy are you?
Milano, Northern Italy.
Nice! My great uncle Umberto Felice lives there!
Just in time for Christmas!!!! Worst meeting I’ve ever had? Any meeting that droned on and on with one person talking at me the entire time and no agenda. Kind of lame. People are going to LOVE this book!
And that’s exactly what they want to see under the tree 🙂
Worst meetings ever: Any large event meeting in which sub-committee work is conducted in the planning committee meeting, forcing everyone else to sit through meetings-within-a-meeting. Ditto to leaders being hit with a decision they didn’t anticipate, and making everyone sit quietly as they examine every microfiber and try to make an “instantaneous” decision. Shoot me!
I love a good meeting hack! Here is my thought about meetings – If the meeting is not necessary, then it is necessary not to meet. I can’t want to see your book, Chris.
Two and half hour staff meeting each week. Boss on her cell phone when she is not talking. Everyone going off directions. Can’t wait to give this book away.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!
About time! No just kidding. But it’s awesome you put something out! Congrads Chris! Can’t way to read and spread the news!
Looking forward to your first book and hope that it is the start of many more! CONGRATULATIONS Chris!!!
Some have said committees are the devils handiwork. If that’s true, their #1 tool would likely be meetings.
That’s great news. Looking forward to it.
Yay! I’ve been waiting for your book. I know it’s going to be amazing. Bravo.
Waiting patiently for it, and thanks for making it free.
Awesome. awesome.
This is awesome, Chris!
I’ve been in plenty of meetings that had no focus. Usually they are just lectures or a conversation between two or three people. When others try to give input, their ideas are put down (“We already tried that”, “that won’t work”, etc.). It also gets demoralizing when the meeting seems okay, but there’s no action taken afterwards. The next meeting begins with, “This is what we covered last time, but didn’t get any of it done.”
Can’t wait Chris!
I’ve led some really lame meetings myself. I can’t pinpoint one…wish I could because that would mean only a few were horrifying. 🙂
The worst one for me is when they don’t happen. On multiple times, my director simply forgot or failed to tell me that plans changed.
Steve, I relate! I spend more time begging my clients for a meeting then spending time in meetings.
Will the book talk about inclusion? That is the biggest problem we have listening and including everyone’s input.
Ever since I was elected to the head of a small board and expected to make the meetings run well and NOT be a waste of time, this topic has been important to me. Can’t wait to read it!
Hey, is it possible to get a copy of the book if you’re already subscribed?