Time Vampires Suck!
If you're like me and value productivity then you also probably detest meetings! In my ~15 years working for corporate america it was extremely rare to say "That was a productive meeting...".
Typically I'd bring something else to the meeting that I could read / work on which would look like I was taking notes.
I've spoken with enough colleagues to know that I'm not alone in my thoughts however I was always amazed that people would just put up with it and accept it! Sometimes, depending on how relevant I thought the meeting would be, I'd just skip it!
Dr. Landrum, founder of Chuck E. Cheese, said it best
"There's an inverse relationship between the number of people in a meeting & what can be accomplished"
I've come to notice
- The Talker– Has to have the spotlight & talks incessantly
- The Jokester– Believes he’s doing stand-up comedy
- The "Yes men" / Brown-noser- Agree w/everything you say but add no value
- The Hater – Quashes every idea & doesn’t offer solutions
- The Perpetuator– Can only agree to follow-up research / meetings that need to get done
- King of Meetings– Boss / Project manager that LOVES meetings, loves showing how smart he is, avoids real work & decisions
- The Tardy Queen– Always running late and never prepared. Wastes everyone's time including her-own.
Which one do you consider the worse? What others do you know? Are you one of the above? Improve your productivity and address it!
If you're fortunate to not be one of the above take a look at Dan Kennedy's No B.S. Time management book. He discusses Time Vampires (and how to deal with them.) I highly recommend the book and adopting his principles on being productive.