The Reluctant Entrepreneur: Turning Dreams into Profits

EFFECTIVE LEADERS MAKE EVERY MEETING WORK FOR THEM

Every time you get together with your employees and/or colleagues to discuss business, you have a chance to advance your goals. Like it or not, it is a forced performance. You are on stage. The person or people you are meeting with are the audience. What you do, how you act, what you say, your gestures, and the tone of voice you choose make an impression.

You should, of course, come to every meeting armed with a goal-oriented plan. The plan should include a specific personal goal. (“I will leave the meeting with an agreement from Jeff on the new joint venture.”) It should also include ideas about how to attain that goal. (“I’ll make a quick, logical argument.”)

But if you’re running the meeting, you have to do that and something more: You have to make sure the meeting provides an opportunity for everyone else to benefit. Planning a meeting with only your own goals in mind can result in failure, especially if those who attend fail to plan too.

HOW TO PLAN—AND RUN—A PRODUCTIVE MEETING

• Before you call a meeting, decide if you really need to meet at all. Ask yourself if the same work might be better handled by phone, e-mail, or memos.
• Determine what you want from the meeting. Make sure it is an achievable goal.
• Set and maintain a reasonable time limit for the meeting.
• Make sure all the attendees know, beforehand, what the purpose of the meeting will be. It should be specific and limited.
• At the beginning of the meeting, restate ...