How to Run Meetings That Don't Suck

The four types of meetings and how to make each one actually useful

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Dear subscribers,

We’ve all sat in on meetings that drain our time and energy. It’s all too common to spend an entire day in these “syncs” only to have to do real work at night.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

An effective meeting can empower people to do better work for months.

So let’s talk about how to run great meetings overall and for each type below:

1. 1-on-1s

2. Team meetings

3. Ad hoc meetings

4. Product reviews

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5 steps to run a great meeting

It’s quite simple:

Peter Yang @petergyang

You could literally shave hours off meetings if more people were willing to share, read, and discuss a doc async ahead of time.

Here’s how I do it:

1. Start with why. Define the goal of the meeting (e.g., “make a decision on X”) and only invite people who can contribute. Clarify who the decision maker is.

2. Share a doc one day before. Write a clear and concise decision doc and ask people to read and discuss async in the doc before the meeting.

3. Discuss only open issues live. It’ll be clear which issues remain unresolved from the async discussion in the doc.

4. Screen share and take notes. This helps people feel heard and keeps discussions focused.

5. Recap and share notes right after. A few bullet points on next steps with a link to the doc will do it.

I try to follow the steps above for every meeting. Now, let’s dive into the four types of meetings and the #1 mistake that you should avoid for each one.

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1-on-1s

The goal of the 1-on-1 is to let two people build trust and empower each other.

The #1 mistake that people make is to use the 1-on-1 for status updates.

Instead, you should:

1. Talk about the awkward issues. Discuss topics that you would hesitate to bring up in a team setting. Examples include:

   1. Expressing concerns about your project

   2. Sharing constructive feedback

   3. Talking about your career goals

2. Try not to cancel or move 1-on-1s. If you’re a manager, it’s easy to move or cancel your 1-on-1s for other “important” meetings. This is disrespectful to your direct reports. Even if you see them everyday, nothing beats a private half-hour conversation where they can be open about real issues.

3. Schedule 1-on-1s with the right people. Aim for weekly 1-on-1s with your manager and direct reports and monthly 1-on-1s with your extended team and other important stakeholders in the company.

1-on-1s have massive leverage - you can improve someone’s work for months with a single heart to heart conversation. Don’t skip them.

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Team meetings

The goal of the team meeting is to provide a regular forum for decision-making.

The #1 mistake that people make is to not have an agenda for their team meeting.

Instead, you should: