ARTICLE | March 05, 2026

Because meetings aren’t interruptions to productivity — they are where work gets done.

The meeting starts five minutes late.
No agenda.
A few vague statements. 

And at the end, someone asks: “So… what are we doing next?” 

We’ve all been in that meeting. 

Time is limited and priorities compete daily — meetings that lack clarity don’t just feel frustrating. They stall momentum. Harvard Business Review reports executives spend nearly 23 hours a week in meetings. That’s a significant portion of our working time. Meetings are not neutral. They either move important work forward — or they quietly slow it down. If we want better outcomes, we need better meetings. 

Start With This Question: Do We Need the Meeting? 

Not every issue requires real-time collaboration. 

Some updates belong in a Teams channel.
Some decisions can be made in a shared document.
Some discussions benefit from reflection before conversation. 

Before scheduling the meeting, ask: Is a meeting the fastest way to create clarity and move this forward? If the answer is no, don’t schedule it. 

Make Progress the Point 

When a meeting is necessary, clarity must lead. 

Every meeting should answer: 

• Why are we meeting? 

• What will we walk away with? 

Framing agenda items as questions is one of the simplest ways to improve focus. 

Instead of:
“Project Update” 

Ask: 
“What are the next three steps to move this forward?” 

Topics invite conversation. Questions drive decisions. And decisions create momentum. 

Design for Engagement — and Ownership 

Many meetings fail because they’re structured as presentations. 

One person speaks.
Everyone else listens.
Energy plummets.  

But meeting time should be reserved for collaboration, problem-solving, and decision-making. Updates can almost always be shared asynchronously. Before the meeting, think about how you will invite people to actively engage. There are so many easy tools to build engagement.

Here are a handful of options:  

• A poll to surface priorities 

• A shared whiteboard to visualize themes 

• A show of hands to test alignment 

• Sticky notes to generate ideas before discussion 

When people are invited to contribute, they take ownership. And ownership drives follow-through. The structure of your meeting shapes the results you produce. 

Collaboration Shouldn’t Start or End in the Meeting 

Consider how this meeting is part of a larger collaboration process. How might you drive progress before, during and after the meeting time?  

Before the meeting:
Share materials in advance so discussion can focus on decisions — not information transfer. 

During the meeting:
Keep the conversation anchored to the purpose and outcomes. Make decisions and questions visible. 

After the meeting:
Confirm what was decided. Clarify who owns each next step. Set deadlines. 

If no one knows what happens next, the meeting was incomplete. Momentum is built when collaboration flows before, through, and beyond the meeting. 

Save this for the next time you plan a meeting. 

Better meetings aren’t about talking more. They’re about making decisions, creating clarity, and driving important work forward. Because meetings aren’t interruptions to productivity. They’re where the work gets done.