How to make all your meetings more effective with one simple question?

Meetings consume a significant amount of valuable time.

Especially when people come to the meeting unprepared.

How could you make your meetings more effective?

When people don't prepare for meetings, it can waste everybody's time or, worse, send the group in the wrong direction.

Let's assume you are in charge and called an introductory meeting.

At the end, you assign tasks to prepare for the next meeting.

How to increase the likelihood that the preparation tasks will be completed fully and on time?

Before leaving the room, ask each individual responsible for preparation:

"Will you be able to complete the preparation task by the next meeting?"

If you hear NO, ask them what is required. Maybe additional resources, time, or expertise?

If you hear YES, it will likely be done as they make an active and public commitment.

To make it active, don't be satisfied with just nodding.

Ask them to say it out loud.

Label them to confirm it again: "Sounds like you'll be ready by next time?"

Let them answer to you positively.

If there are people with a history of not completing their tasks, you can ask them:

"Will you notify me ahead of time, in case you run into a risk that your task won't be completed?"

And wait for their active confirmation.

The Consistency principle is simple yet very powerful.

It helps save time and money and reduce unwanted surprises.

If you'd like to find more examples of applying this principle, subscribe to my newsletter and get access to the Negotiation and Influence podcast recordings.

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