Why would a guy make a bad meeting?

Well, here it is: call a public corporation and ask to speak to the CEO.

If someone tells you that the CEO expects to be busy in meetings for the next six hundred years, call your broker and sell the stock short.

Why? Any company that can't handle an activity that should take an hour is on its way down the financial tubes.

Surveys show that companies waste an average of 20% of their salaries on bad meetings.Meetings take people away from the tasks they were hired to do—the tasks that make the business money and keep the business ahead of the competition.

In fact, if people are wasting time in meetings, you can conclude that they are doing the wrong thing in the meeting.

While it's true that executives spend most of their time in meetings, you can bet the business is in trouble if their meetings get out of hand.

Senior managers should use consultations to develop, review and revise strategy. If they spend time just talking about things, then they are slacking off at work.

Since bad dates are so pointless, you might wonder why anyone tolerates them. Unfortunately, many business leaders think their meetings are just fine. They even believe they are experts at running effective meetings.

For example, when I call companies to see if they're interested in improving their meetings, I sometimes get an assistant who assures me that the managers believe they're running great meetings. Then the assistant chuckles, coughs quietly, and calms down again to declare that they don't need my services. At this point, the assistant sounds like someone on a sinking ship throwing a life jacket into the water.

And that has to make you think: why would any intelligent person hold a meeting that would waste everyone's time and produce nothing.

There are easy answers such as

1. they don't know their meetings could be effective,

2. they don't know how effective a meeting is, or

3. they don't know how to run an effective meeting.

But what about the others? That said, what about all the managers who know how to plan, organize and run an effective business but still hold bad meetings?

Let's dig deeper. These executives actually want to hold bad meetings because they turn out to be useful. Here is the procedure.

1. They provide shelter.

Bad meetings provide a sophisticated form of executive strain. Some people find it useful because it prevents them from working on difficult tasks such as planning, coaching, learning and communication. In fact, it's so easy that a six-year-old could do it, assuming you could convince a child to stay inside for such a pointless activity.

Better: An effective meeting is a business activity where people work together.

2. They avoid responsibility.

Bad meetings never end with decisions, which means no one is held accountable for doing something. Some people find this useful because accountability means accountability and accountability requires results. So without accountability, there is no failure and everyone seems to be performing well. This covers up poor performance so everyone continues to get raises and promotions even though they haven't accomplished anything because (you guessed it) they spent all their time sitting in meetings.

Better: Effective meetings create decisions that someone is responsible for implementing.

3. They provide excitement.

Bad Encounters have all the elements of good drama, such as conflict, tension, and pain. For example, participants give self-aggrandizing messages, denigrate their colleagues, and engage in politics. Some truly awful encounters play out as pathetic battlefields where verbal gladiators fight for favor while the boss looks on.

Better: Effective meetings take place in a safe environment of respect.

4. They serve food.

Bad dates become an enviable perk when they provide snacks, coffee and (sometimes) food. Participants then use food to offset the boredom of having to listen to pointless discussions. It will also save them the expense of buying groceries.

Better: Eating should be a separate activity used to build relationships and (sometimes) relax.

5. It's fun.

Bad meetings resemble a party. People tell stories, trade jokes, and argue over little things. Some meetings feature a comedy performance by the office fool. And if neither happens, the absolutely incredible discussions will amaze and entertain everyone.

Better: Effective meetings use process tools to methodically progress toward results.

All of this shows why the type of meetings held in a company should be a major concern when making investment decisions. If executives need to learn how to do this, this can be remedied by scheduling a workshop. You can then consider investing in the company after they complete the workshop. However, if executives are holding bad meetings to avoid critical leadership responsibilities, you should look for other investments.

Why would a guy make a bad meeting?