Setup Task 6: Summarize Meetings

Summarize Meetings 

Make sure that during some time in your meeting you review and summarize all the important points discussed during the meeting, this especially should be done at the end of the meeting. If you had a long meeting with issues that might be harder to grasp then this part is extremely important 

When you do make the time to summarize you can go over things that need to get done before the next meeting. Can go over different tasks that are gonna be assigned to different people, can also serve as a reminder and can make sure that everyone is on the same page and understand what had been taken away from the meeting. For example, "Moe should get the textbooks needed for the discussion, Jennifer has to book the hall by next monday, Sejutie needs to get everyone a copy of the proposal printed before the next meeting...." This is a good way to summarize the meeting so that everyone understand there role before leaving. 

Most importantly, remember to keep the meetings short and precise so this does not happen:

Let me know in the comments below if you have ever had to summarize at the end of the meeting as a meeting leader. 

Setup task 5: Stick to the subjects

Stick to the subject

Meetings can often go over the time period allotted because sometimes participants try to solve by just talking when you might have to do some research instead. If you do not know how to deal with a situation like this then the group is gonna get into a conflict and it will be hard to resolve. 

A simple way to handle something like this is to simply make everyone move away from the subject and leave it to deal with it in another meeting have a subcommittee look into it. You can also have a place such as the "parking lot" where people can bring up the issues missed during the meeting to be brought up later or have a discussion thread set up online. 

By having a plan in place you will avoid going over the given time and have a successful meeting. 

Better to move on to important business before a small conflict leads to this: 

Let me know in the comments below if you have ever gone over the time period of a meeting because of an argument or conflict.

Setup Task 4: Structure discussions

Structure discussions 

It can be a difficult task to keep the discussions moving forward and organized. It can be hard to keep everyone in the meeting to pay attention or to make them stay on task. 

An easy way to deal with this problem is that you can make rules prior to the meeting and make sure everyone knows the rules before the meeting starts. You can send out an e-mail or memo regarding the meeting rules and etiquette with the agenda. Such rules can consist of only letting one person speak at a time or letting each person talk at least once before others make second comments or suggestions. 

Deciding on the rules before the meeting and figuring out what will happen if the rules are broken will make it easier for the meeting leader to keep everyone on track, and will come off as enforcing the group's rules rather than your own.

Having a discussion during a meeting

Another important thing to remember is that make sure everyone gets a chance to state their opinion or speak at the meeting. A meeting leader's job is act as a referee during the meeting and make sure everyone is treated equally and fairly. A meeting leader should let the conversation flow and let opposing sides state their opinions. The final outcome on such debates should be that everyone agrees. To make everyone agree, try to find common ground between opposing sides and make them both compromise to come to an agreeable solution. 

Here's a a short video I found that is an example of a bad meeting, if you've been keeping up with my blog then your meetings should not look like this:

             

If you have ever disagreed with something during a meeting, let me know how you dealt with it as a group in the comments below.

Setup Task 3: Dividing Chores

Dividing Chores Amongst Participants:

Even though you might want to do everything yourself, it would be much more efficient and easier if everyone has assigned role or task that they can do before the meeting to make the meeting run smoothly and effectively.

Dividing up tasks is important

You can appoint one person as a secretary to be in charge of the minutes and is also responsible to send them out to all the participants after the meetings. Can ask people to help you gather resources for a meeting if necessary, for example getting plastic cups and water for a long meeting. Certain members could be asked to report or gather information for topics to be discussed in the meetings. You can assign subcommittees for important issues or topics so not everyone's time is wasted during the meeting. 

This can strengthen your committee and makes your meetings more productive because the participants will be involved and committed. As a meeting leader, don't be afraid to assign people different tasks. 

Here's a a short video I found which explains the importance of why it is important to delegate tasks to the participant of the meeting:

                                  


Let me know in the comments below if you have ever been assigned a task for a meeting or been the one assigning tasks.

Setup Task 2: Agenda

Setting An Agenda

One problem that is common during meetings is that sometimes the objective is unclear. When organizing a meeting, it is important to set an agenda before meeting because it lets everyone know what to expect and helps the meeting run smoothly. Having an agenda sets the right tone and lets participants know what issues, ideas and information will be discussed 

When an agenda lets participants know exactly what topics will be discussed, it won't leave them wondering if a certain topic is going to be brought up during the meeting. It also eliminates people bringing up topics not related to the meeting and keeps everything on track. An agenda works as a written reminder for everyone participating so they know what needs to be accomplished during the meeting. 

Make sure the agenda is handed out to the participants at least 2 days before the meeting so they can prepare for the discussion. You can download different types of business meeting agenda templates here to help you get started. 

Here is a sample business meeting agenda.

Spending time to make an agenda properly before the meeting will help save a lot of time during the meeting. Have you ever had to make business meeting agenda before or got handed one for a meeting? Please let me know in the comments below. 

Introduction and Setup Task 1

Introduction

Hi, my name is Muhammad Razzaq and in this blog I will be posting about different techniques and steps you can take in order to have a productive meeting. It is important to plan out a meeting before hand because you need to know what to talk to about during the meeting, you don't waste anybody's time and the important information or ideas are communicated successfully. Successful meetings are always structured, some parts can be more visible than others, especially in informal meetings. There are 8 different setup tasks that you can do in order to have a successful meeting. 

Choose the time wisely 

You would want to pick a time where people are not hungry, tired or distracted by something. Try to be stern with the date and time because it is hard to choose a time that everyone prefers, because people prefer different things. But still try to accommodate everyone to the best of your ability.

Timing is very important for a meeting

Everyone should know that the meeting will start on time and take attendance at the beginning of the meeting. Make sure to assign some one in the group before hand to take minutes and let everyone participating in the meeting that minutes will be taken. It is important to e-mail or call the person who is being assigned to take minutes so that he or she comes prepared with a notebook, pencil, pen, etc. Minutes are the notes taken during the meeting to keep track of all the ideas and information being discussed.

Keeping minutes to a meeting is very important, here's an example

 Pick a realistic time limit and try and stay within that time limit. Always make sure that the meeting room is quite and free from any distractions. That means that going to a restaurant for a meeting is probably a bad idea, even though it can be fun but you won't accomplish anything.

Here is a short video that I found on youtube, which has little hints and tips for having a successful meeting:

If you have ever experienced an unsuccessful meeting because the time was not chosen wisely, there were distractions, or minutes were not kept, please let me know of your experiences in the comments below.