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Does your behavior in a meeting improve the efficiency of that meeting? Or does it contribute to time wasted? Below are 3 behaviors that erode the quality of meetings, not to mention your colleagues’ sanity. After you read these, and tell yourself that you’re not guilty of these behaviors, I challenge you to observe yourself in your next meeting. Before you speak, consider whether or not you are contributing productively to the discussion at hand. Better yet, ask your fellow meeting participants to check you, should you have these habits.
1. Getting lost in the nitty gritty
What it looks like: During a meeting your boss asks you if you can organize a small group check in with some of the meeting participants to work on a separate project. Rather than saying okay, noting it on your assignment list and planning it after the meeting, you ask the group question after question about the assignment: What time is best for those involved in the project? In which office should we meet? etc.
Why it’s problematic: Since not everyone is involved in the separate project and there are more topics to get through as a group, discussing the plans with the entire group during the meeting is an inappropriate use of meeting time.
2. Restating the obvious
What it looks like: Dana is explaining to Judy that she is unsure how to staff a weekend event because several of her staff members have informed her that they cannot work on weekends. Judy responds with, “Okay” and quietly contemplates how she is going to staff her event. You jump in and explain to Judy, “Dana is saying that it’s really not possible for her team to staff the event since she’s already checked in with them about the schedule.”
Why it’s problematic: Your statement is not only unnecessary and repetitive, it also assumes Dana is not communicating clearly and that Judy is unable to comprehend. Neither are true. This aggressiveness dominates a meeting and can easily feel condescending. Although you may think you are providing a clarifying statement, it can be understood as speaking for others.
3. Speaking for others
What it looks like: You are recounting learnings from last week’s conference for your colleagues. You tell them that the event “was interesting because so many of the participants were,” before pausing to decide how you will describe the participants. Just as you’re finding the space to select your word, Rose goes ahead and finishes your sentence saying, “from academia.”
Why it’s problematic: When you speak for someone else, by finishing her sentence, or answering for her, you are actually disrespecting both her and her audience. She is capable of finishing her sentence. Finishing her sentence for her communicates that you don’t have the patience for her to craft her message, and you believe you know what she is going to say before she says it. You don’t—so fall back.
Are you guilty of these habits? Remember, it’s never too late to make a change.