Time is so precious in business, why waste it!

When I speak with business owners and managers of all ranks within organizations, their biggest constraint is mostly TIME. Considering the value of time to you and your business, every second ought to be used productively right? Think again, because it's not!

Over the past 40 years, I have attended thousands of meetings and must confess that many were an absolute waste of time and resources! I'm of the opinion that meetings should only be held if absolutely necessary, not merely to tick boxes. What is so interesting is that some managers love meetings, some just tolerate them, and others simply hate them. Where do you fit in?

Have you ever wondered what the eventual outcomes would be whether you have plenty of staff meetings, or just a few when it's absolutely necessary?

Sales and Business Development meetings with customers are different of course and need to happen, as they are not just a 'box ticking, nice to have sessions.' Regardless of what type of meeting you're attending, TIME will always be of the essence. 

In order to use your time, and of course the time of those you meet with, wisely, you need to prepare well for all meetings and have an outcome in mind. Meetings are great opportunities to get information communicated and to make things happen. They are also opportunities to share information, listen to the points of view of others, to clarify information, counter objections, argue your points of view (if required to) and work towards gaining consensus to achieve something worthwhile. 

Regardless of the type of meeting you are organizing, think carefully about the following key points beforehand:

1. How long will it take?

2. What information needs to be conveyed, how & by whom it will be done?

3. Who needs to genuinely be present?

4. How will you prevent 'longwindedness' and/or exceeding time limits?

5. What are the desired outcomes?

6. Is it really necessary, or essential, to have the meeting in the first instance?

Time is an increasingly scarce commodity in modern business and if it is not used efficiently, your productivity and bottom line will suffer!

PREPARATION + OBJECTIVES + BREVITY = SUCCESSFUL TIME UTILIZATION