You could say that for an interesting number of people, these types of meetings are similar to failed love relationships: they leave you with a bitter taste at the first change, after a while the “perfect escape” phase begins to activate slippery tactics and at the end of the cycle, as if that were not enough, you have to learn to live with them because what does not kill you, strengthens you.

A cocktail of sensations similar to those described are those that shape the work day of those mortals who belong -especially- to traditional organizations higher than the top of Mount Everest. It is worth clarifying that this does not exclude the members of some technology companies that have not yet jumped on the train of organizational ease. 

Because no one is perfect and we all make mistakes from time to time, we bring a ranking of the errors that occur most frequently during work environment meetings, so that you know how to address them and improve your experience as a guide. Next: 

Error 1: undefined and unclear objective in meetings

If the main purpose of the meeting is not clear, two things can happen: participants may not understand why they need to be present, or you may call the wrong people.

SOLUTION: explain the objective at the beginning of the meetings and write it on a white board to keep it visible during the meeting. Ask yourself how each person is expected to contribute to the discussion. Do you expect them to provide you with ideas or feedback?

Mistake 2: Summoning the wrong people 

It is neither necessary nor recommended that all members attend every meeting. If the objectives and topics on the agenda do not correspond to them, people begin to get easily distracted - they check their email box or the time on their cell phone - and stop contributing to the discussion. Another mistake is not including people with the greatest interest in the topic, who have key information for the discussion or who should take part in its implementation. 

SOLUTION: explain the reason and objectives - what is expected of the attendees on that occasion - of the meeting both in the call and at the beginning of it.

If the agenda includes topics that correspond to only part of the team, include them after having seen the topics that involve everyone. 

Error 3: starting and finishing late

In many organizations, tardiness both at the beginning and at the end of work meetings is such a common mistake that it ended up becoming a norm. This means that many people arrive at the scheduled time but have to go to the trouble of waiting for those who arrive late. In this way time is wasted, energy is dispersed and the opportunity cost of bringing the group together grows minute by minute.

It is totalthe leader's responsibility to establish and clarify the start-end time of each of the meetings.

SOLUTION: If lack of punctuality has become a frequent occurrence during work meetings in your organization, it is necessary to send messages clarifying that the rules have changed as many times as necessary until a change in attitude occurs.

In the case of the facilitator, he must try to have all the necessary resources before starting his meetings to avoid setbacks.

Error 4: not having a thematic agenda

If you want the team to arrive on time and be ready to contribute to the objective set in advance, it is extremely important to prepare an agenda and circulate it - through some internal communication channel - at least 24 hours prior to the call.

In this sense, the lack of background on the topic to be addressed and the fact that no one is prepared to present it is a frequent situation that must also be eliminated.

SOLUTION: Time should be scheduled to plan the agenda, preferably several days before the meeting. If necessary, use other colleagues to consult and discuss the list of topics and their order of priority.

Error 5: many words and no action

Work meetings are not just for talking incessantly for countless minutes, without reaching a conclusion. To avoid the waste of time caused by endless speeches, it is necessary to define in advance the main objective of the meeting, answering the following questions: what is expected of the group in this session? Generate ideas? Evaluate options? or make a decision?

Without clarity about the goal, it is not known when the exhibition can be closed and move on to another topic for example. 

Before changing the topic or ending the meeting, a good summary of what has been achieved so far should be achieved, defining the next steps, who will be responsible for each task, and finally, the deadlines to be met.

SOLUTION: during meetings, ensure that all attendees have a record of the topics to be discussed and the commitments made to follow up on the topics. Send these records by email to each person, to then facilitate a subsequent analysis of progress in the future meeting.

Another option that can be adopted is to establish a rule in which no one speaks twice about a certain topic, until everyone who wants to participate has the opportunity to do so. Another rule that can be dictated is to look for a solution to the problem every time employees meet.