Meetings and those dreaded meetings about meetings generally just get in the way of doing real work. However, without meetings, we may have any real work to do.
While technology has made communication instant and convenient it has not eradicated the need for face-to-face meetings. Most people would agree that you’ll get more done and employ all the most convincing types of communication to get your point across. Compared to the semi-anonymous environment of the conference call, every detail counts - your body language, the way you’re dressed, the choice of venue and even the quality of the coffee.
With all the different ways we have to communicate now, it is more important than ever to make face-to-face meetings count. Here are five tips on how to succeed in meetings.
Start on a good note
Think carefully about how you greet people when they turn up for a meeting. Leaving them waiting in reception until the exact start time implies that you’re a busy, important person. Meeting them at the lift is likely to make them feel more loved and respected. Letting a regular client just wander in may make them feel like they’re part of your team, but it could also seem unprofessional.
Choose your seat carefully
Power is an important factor of many meetings. If you want to be perceived as the most important and influential person in the meeting, position yourself in the middle of the shortest edge of the table. That way you’re sitting where the ‘head of the table’ should be. This is a perfect place for someone who wants to be seen as the voice of reason as you’re between everyone and should find most people’s gaze will go naturally.
If the meeting is centered on a big screen, try sitting closer to the screen, not the back of the room. You will be easier to pay attention to because everyone’s already been forced to look your way.
Don’t switch your phone to vibrate
You have deliberately taken time out of your everyday tasks for a meeting - the person you are meeting should get your undivided attention. Leave your Blackberry in your pocket. Putting your phone on the table indicates to the people you are meeting that you are not fully engaged because you need to have one eye on the phone. If you absolutely must keep your phone out, ask permission and explain why, it’s rude not to.
Always turn your phone off before a meeting. Off does not mean setting your phone to vibrate, when your phone vibrates, it’s making a repeated noised designed to attract your attention – it’s essentially ringing.
Avoid talking rubbish
The language you use will decide whether or not you’re understood, believed and taken seriously. When you are heavily involved in business and technology, jargon and acronyms are a prerequisite but that doesn’t mean you have to start talking nonsense.
Avoid silly phrases such as ‘helicopter views’, ‘blue-sky thinking’ and talking about how much ‘bandwidth’ you have (unless you’re actually talking about bandwidth), not everyone will understand what you’re talking about and some may even find you ridiculous.
Nominate or become a chairperson
Make sure someone is chairing the meeting – it doesn’t’ need to be the most senior person in the room, just someone who can keep the discussion on track and on time and who will make sure that everybody can have their say.
If you’re the chairperson, don’t wait for someone to put their hand up. You have to look out for signals from people who really want to take their turn – listen out for sharp intakes of breath, finger tapping, someone lifting their pen or fingers slightly. Make sure you interrupt the people that talk the most now and again and ask the quiet people what they think.
