Why 60 minutes?

How many times have you heard “This meeting probably won’t take the full hour” or one of my favorites “We’re going to give you 15 minutes of your time back”? Both concepts indicate the exact same thing – the meeting probably was not well planned, with an agenda and a clear objective. They were just scheduled for the default 60-minute time frame because it is easy and the standard meeting length.

There is a problem with the meeting you just scheduled.... you blindly booked it for 60 minutes. Did you look at what you want to meet about and think how long you actually need?

Here are a few suggestions on how to get the most out of your scheduled meeting time:

1)?????Agendas. Send an agenda or at least a few bullet points in your meeting invite. This will keep the meeting focused and show your participants that you feel their time is valuable and you thought through what you want to accomplish.

2)?????Make 30 minutes the standard. 30 minutes for status updates, one-on-one touch-base conversations or to discuss a single issue. You will be surprised how much you can accomplish!

3)?????Implement the “Short Hour”. Schedule 45- 50 minutes when there are several issues to discuss or if the topic is more complex. There are definite advantages in scheduling short of a full hour: People will be more focused, and everyone will get a few minutes to transition between meetings.

So, for your next meeting, avoid the one-hour trap. Instead, be clear about what you wish to accomplish, then schedule just the time you need! Give your teammates “back” those minutes in advance – they will appreciate it… and with your meetings stopping 10-15 minutes short of the hour…. Everyone will have time to go get another cup of coffee!