When I mention the word “meetings” what is your first reaction? Do you suddenly feel sleepy or do you want to run for the nearest exit? Or are you enthusiastic and intrigued, looking forward to the thrill of creative group problem solving, fantastic brainstorming, and a team of people working with trust and healthy conflict? I visit and work in many different companies and organizations and notice that most people’s feelings about meetings are more like my first statement.

I love meetings. I realize that having lively, productive meetings is not easy, but also know that it is not only possible, but extremely important for the health of teams and for organizations.

I particularly enjoy working with teams to transform the feel and culture of meetings, and in the process often transform the culture of the company. Here are just a few things that I’ve found to be useful:

- Have a clear sense of what a successful meeting looks like. A good question to ask at the beginning of a meeting is – when we end this meeting, what do we want to have accomplished?

- Know what type of meeting you are having. Are you sharing information, brainstorming ideas, problem solving, planning, making decisions, or teambuilding? This may be obvious, but is often overlooked. Each type of meeting needs to be treated quite differently.

- I like to begin meetings by finding ways to bring everyone’s voice into the room, as well as bringing some silence into the room. This can be done by having people speak in pairs for a few minutes, or with a quick check in. At times, 30 seconds of silence at the beginning of a meeting can act to set the “reset” button, to clear the space for more connection.

- Understand that an unstated item on nearly every meeting agenda is trust, leadership, and teambuilding. Trust comes from high integrity, accountability, and admitting mistakes. Leadership requires presence, listening, and good planning. Teambuilding requires conveying a shared vision of success.

What have you found are the most important ingredients for successful meetings?