Cameron Test Bootstrap: June 2015

Truly Great Experience

My Friday Morning Meeting Location

This past Friday, I had the opportunity to play golf at the Las Colinas Country Club. So I will caveat this story with a few things. First, I am not good at golf. I have, at times, gotten much better at it, but it has been a few years since I have played with enough consistency to generate any consistency in my game. Second, I do not get to play high end courses like this frequently. This particular round I won in a charity auction last year and finally got around to using. Still, I got out with a couple of my good friends and had a great time playing a truly amazing golf course. I will post a little bit later on customer service and the difference in these high end experiences and the standard municipal course that I end up on. But today, I thought I would talk about the value of experience.

I did not break 100. One in our group did (88 for Jon). There was a point in my golfing days that I was targeting the 80s and shooting the low 90s, but being as out of practice as I am, I thought my low 100s was a decent score for such a great course (though I am sure there were a couple of strokes here and there that were ignored on the scorecard).

Despite the score, though, there were other things to focus on.

For starters, there were still glimmers of hope in my game. I had two approach shots where I landed nicely on the green from 80-120 yards out. The large island-like greens didn't hurt, but still, the few shots that went totally pure off the club always draw me back to the game. I also had a very nice birdie putt from off the green on a par 3. If I can hit a perfect approach shot twice in a round, I can hit a perfect approach shot four or six or eighteen times. I can putt lights-out more than one hole, for sure. In another round. All in all, there were at least ten or eleven shots that I was extremely happy with. So my goal from here is just increase that from ten percent.

But beyond the play, the course itself was beautiful (don't believe me? Check that picture of the first tee above). We admired the wildlife along the way as well (if you play golf and don't check out wildlife in our little urban green spots, you're missing part of the game in my opinion). I managed to see a woodpecker with a bright red head, a horned toad or some other large lizard, geese, egrets, and an extremely fast turtle making its way across the bridge that we all commented on. A leaping bass from a water hazard rounded out the bunch.

Add to that the overall service of the place (which I will detail later). But the overall experience was one to cherish. I can't say when I can repeat that again. Sure, I'll play golf with my friends, but it won't match up to everything that we were able to go through on Friday. The stories, the bonding, the discussion, and the round were all a one-time event that is now the past. But it is our past. A shared experience that we all have. And that's what makes life.

Not all experiences are that great. Some are quite the opposite. But they still leave an impact and the ability for us to learn and move forward with them to grow as people.

What experience has shaped you of late?

Book Time: Launch

So, if you have read this blog a little while, you know I have decided to periodically share some of the books I have been reading with you. The last one I shared was Start, and now I've got another one-word title with a giant subtitle for you: Launch: An Internet Millionaire's Secret Formula To Sell Almost Anything Online, Build A Business You Love, And Live The Life Of Your Dreams. Note: the Amazon links in this post are affiliate links and I get paid if you buy something from them. I'm required to tell you this, but it's also just being honest.

If you don't know Jeff Walker, he's somewhat of an interesting character. He quit his job at some point, then started an internet business while being a stay-at-home dad, and eventually grew a multi-million-dollar marketing and coaching empire out of it. And he gives a ton of content away for free. If you have never seen him, you should jump over to his site and find a video or two to watch. He's entertaining and has some good concepts about marketing. But his real gold is his launch strategy. I will tell you after reading the book and watching his videos, I have an understanding of how to launch a product that I will likely (once I have a product) utilize to properly position it. But there is more in here as well about being an entrepreneur, managing through success and failure, and trying again.

The book's actual launch process will open your eyes to where others may be trying to utilize his methods, but it honestly doesn't matter. A launch is effective or not based on the content and audience, and Jeff's methods are just a way to key in on clients who will buy.

I'm on to reading my next book now (and working through some classic business books), but always looking for suggestions. What are you reading? Anything good that I should pick up?

Satisfaction

I listened to an interesting conference call tonight. It was a coaching call on how to be a better coach. But the first part (before we got to the real meat) was about graciousness and thankfulness, and that made me think about what it means to be satisfied.

Satisfaction gets a bad rap - it comes across as lazy or unwilling to push the limits. Those that are merely satisfied are presenting one more argument to the arbitrary math magic.

But being satisfied with yourself and where you are in life is not a bad trait. It is not a bad state of mind. Rather, satisfaction is deciding that where you are is really good enough for you. It is one key to being happy, to divest yourself from the need to compete or keep up with everyone else. You don't really need to make more money, do you?

Are you still looking around at everyone else to determine whether or not you are successful? Take a minute and think about everything that you have and how thankful you are to have it. What's are you most thankful for? Let me know and I'll follow up with you.

Thanks!

Photo credit: Hans on Pixabay

The Barbell Career Strategy

I read across an interesting article over at Inc. recently, which I recommend you read. But, in case you only read my posts, which I appreciate, I'll sum it up. It cites European professor Horatio Falcao's conclusions that the traditional work-life divide leads to unhappiness and suggests diversifying your time strategy.

When it comes to career, you need to invest some time in something outside your stable daily grind. Falcao suggests something risky, and outside your normal safety zone. He defines the strategy like a barbell, focused on high risk and reward items as well as totally safe endeavors with no room for anything that falls in the middle of the spectrum.

So here's the challenge: what is your high-risk and high-reward pursuit?

Starting a part-time business
Taking training in something outside your field
Pursuing a hobby
Doing some charity or pro bono work
Something crazier

For me, writing (and this blog) is likely part of mine. But what's yours? I would love to hear about it. Leave me a comment below or Tweet at me and let me know.

Photo credit: jboelhower on Pixabay

Seize the Moment

Did you watch any of the U.S. Open on Sunday? It usually winds up on Father's Day, and it has the potential to always be some great finish. This one was no different. Jordan Speith, who also won The Masters this year, finished at five under par, and then had to wait and watch as the next group finished to see whether he had won or not.

The day did not end well for Dustin Johnson, who could have won or forced a playoff with two missed putts and ended up tying for second. Compound that with the constant reminders from the announcers that Johnson disqualified himself a couple of years ago when he was chasing another U.S. Open victory, and it just doesn't seem like this is his tournament.

So while there is a lot that could be said metaphorically about Speith's win or Johnson's defeat, I have a much more direct observation, and it came from an email I received today. A national golf retailer emailed me an ad to buy the same clothes that Jordan Speith had worn on Saturday and Sunday. Teaming up with UnderArmour, they had already prepped the outfits and marketing to be ready to go to sell to a group of fans that were ready to buy.

Given that there were at least three players in contention to win, I have to wonder how much prep and negotiating went into that ad. How many contingency emails were ready to send? Would I have received ads trying to sell me Dustin Johnson's shirt Monday morning if he had made one of those two putts? However much went into it, I have to give a hand to the marketing team that worked over the weekend to be ready to press "send" on Monday morning. Because I guarantee after watching Jordan Speith play all day, someone was wondering, "I wonder where I can get that shirt? Or that hat?" And Monday morning, the answer was given to them.

How can you seize the moment for your target market? What are they already thinking about and what questions do they have that you can answer?

Photo credit: stefanschenkon on Pixabay

Be Nicer, Jerk.

At times, every one of us lets our world become the universe. We think about everything through our filter and assume everyone is exactly like us and reacts exactly the same way as we would. But the truth is that everyone is different. And when we are focused solely on our little world or universe, we miss the opportunity to help out those that help us. In fact, we risk letting our complaints about our world spill over to make us jerks in theirs. That's not a great thing.

Here's a general rule for you: be nicer to people than you currently are. Especially those that support you in the company. Most will treat the boss with respect, as it's considered just "doing the job." But when it comes to your employees or those in less of a leadership role than you are, then it is also extremely important to keep the respect level high when working with them. Those individuals help make you succeed and being a jerk to them earns you no loyalty.

If you are nice to people, a few things might happen.

People might help you back - The nicer you are, the likelihood that someone helps you when you need it grows
You can gain support - The more people you have a good relationship with, the more will support you when you need it
You start to feel happier - It is really difficult to resist being happy when you are trying to show that happiness to others.
You can build your "tribe" - There's lots of talk about tribes, but do you think that you can build one being a jerk? People don't like to follow or hang out with jerks.

So, you can maximize your happiness and productivity all in one swoop, but it all starts with a simple decision to move forward and to be nice to others on the journey.

So, how could you be nicer to someone today? Got ideas? Use the share buttons below to let your friends know what you think.

It's Friday

Have a little fun today.

How Strong Is Your Network?

Congratulations! You now have 500 or maybe 1000 connections on LinkedIn. You have 600 Facebook Friends. Maybe you have 1000 Twitter followers. That is a great social network. Or so you would like to believe.

My friend Pete once offered me a challenge: Go through your 500 LinkedIn connections and ask yourself one question, "How many of these people could create a job for me on the day I needed it?" In his theory, if the answer is one, you are better than most. If the answer is two or more, you are invincible. I'll give you a hint: it is difficult to say you have even one.

Networks are the most powerful way to get hired. It is always better to have someone personally recommend you for a position than to trust your fate to the zeroes and ones of the online job boards. Even if your network cannot instantly create jobs for you out of thin air, chances are you have a chunk of second tier connections who will help you find a job by championing your cause.

I like my friend Pete's question, but the other question to ask of your network (particularly if you are an entrepreneur) is "How many of these people would buy from me, twice?" It's the last word of that question that's the key to me. Anyone can dupe someone into buying something or trying something that they totally don't want. Once. As soon as you start talking about repeat business, the focus shifts to customer service and good response.

How strong is your network? Use the buttons below to share this with them.

Photo credit: Pezibear via Pixabay

Removing Weeds

Weeds hurt your lawn. If you are looking to cultivate a lush, green lawn, then you have to work hard, whether pre- or post-emergent, to remove and reduce weeds. They suck up water and nutrients that your lawn needs to grow. Weeds grow tall and throw off the look of your lawn, while shading the shorter grass and preventing it from getting sunlight. Weeds do not help your grass to grow thickly.

My guess is you have some digital weeds, too. Emails that clog your inbox (hopefully not these posts) and prevent you from getting anything valuable. Apps that sit on your phone and you never use.

I noticed tonight that I was getting restaurant ads from two independent restaurants in the city where we used to live. In no way were those two ads relevant or helpful to me anymore. Rarely would I find myself in a position to eat at those restaurants, and less likely would I need the weekly special that particular week. Their two emails were inbox weeds.

I love apps, too, on my Android phone. That said, I rarely go through and audit or delete apps off of my phone, even when they don't work the way I wanted them to. Last week I deleted four.

The power to delete is strong, and needs to be used more frequently if we are trying to cultivate better communications. Weed out junk email that you don't need. Eliminate the unnecessary Twitter individuals you are following but you can't remember why. Remove three apps on your phone. Do it right now. I can wait.

OK, what did you remove? Tweet me and let me know.

Photo credit: eacuna via Pixabay

Laugh

When was the last time you laughed? No, I don't meanthe last time you typed "LOL" to someone on IM. And I don't mean that small chuckle that you actually laughed out loud at the oh-so-clever joke that your cousin shared on Facebook. I mean when is the last time that you seriously laughed?

There is an old adage that laughter is the best medicine. Researchers have indicated this may actually be correct from some of the positive physical benefits of laughter. In a quick summary, laughing can:

Boost your heart rate
Increase oxygen flow
Act as an exercise
Burn excess calories
Reduce stress
Improve sleep
and more

So, if laughter is so great, why don't we take advantage of it more often? Too often I think we let ourselves get in the way. Being overly serious in an attempt to impress others or keep our guard up. This is particularly relevant at work. If your answer to the above question was relatively recent, let me get more specific; When was the last time that you seriously laughed at work?

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What To Do When There's No Boss

Zappos.com, the giant online shoe store recently jumped headlong into an experiment called Holacracy, wherein all management and titles were abolished. Can you imagine that? A world with no hierarchies.

The actual results that Zappos is receiving, though, is mixed. Rather than some overnight miracle turning Zappos into an innovative Silicon-Valley-startup type of culture, it is taking time. All radical things do.

So with any major transformation of a company, it will take time. Part of that is changing cultures. Part of it is adaptation to new roles. Part is determining whether or not the employees are willing to participate or not. Maybe the philosophy works, maybe it doesn't. It is always easier to test out theories of management and style in an incubator or startup as opposed to a huge entrenched company. But only time will tell.

How do you think it will end up? I would love to hear your opinion. Leave me a comment below or Tweet me and start up a conversation.

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One Way To Get Free Money!

Impact of Employer Match on Retirement Profile

How would you like to claim your share of $24 billion? That's the estimate of how much money was unclaimed in a report by Financial Engines, an independent investment adviser firm after researching the behavior of 4.4 million retirement plan participants. What kind of money? Employer matching to 401(k) plans.

By now I'm sure you've read my post on saving as soon as you can for retirement (if you haven't, you can take a few minutes to read that one and then come back). So, you are familiar with the plight of Bob. He's the guy that made the national median household income of $51,939 and earned a good 9.3% on his investments (once he started investing at age 35). Rather than continue to bash Bob for waiting so long to invest, though, I'll give him kudos here. He had an employer matching program that matched fifty cents on the dollar up to the first 6% of his investment (this, by the way is just the most common 401(k) fixed match plan out there, and by no means represents everything).

Bob's Investment Breakdown at Age 67

If you remember, Bob ended up with just over $1.4 million dollars at 67. If you don't remember, seriously, go read that post first. What I did not mention in that post was that if he had the employer match which I am now claiming he does, he actually ended up with just over $1,790,720.00 at the same age. That is an extra $298,000 over the life of the account if you are keeping score. If you want to think further, it contributed 17% of his overall wealth.

The real trick is that even if Bob only invested 6% of his annual income in the 401(k) instead of 15%, he still would have ended up with that extra $298,000. Because his employer match maxed once he was contributing 6%. That money came directly from the employer and not out of Bob's income. Nothing to lose. And yet millions of Americans fall short of the amount required to capitalize on their employer match. In Bob's case, that's $1558.17 of free money every year. Free money.

Are you fully utilizing your employer match? If not, how much money are you leaving on the table? I'm interested in starting a discussion if you want to shoot me a tweet over on Twitter.

Don't Bring It With You

It is incredibly easy to let stress in one area of your life cause problems in others. The person who comes home from a long day at the office only to take it out on the family has become a bit of a cliche even in popular culture. But the street runs both ways, and to successfully navigate the various areas of your life, it is important to separate stress from activity. Here are some thoughts on how to handle stressful situations:

Acknowledge the Stressor
In order to appropriately separate interests and keep one stress from bleeding over, it is important to acknowledge what is causing the stress in the first place. Are you under a lot of pressure at work? Having financial problems at home? The first step is to acknowledge what is causing the pressure so you can appropriately categorize it.

Isolate the Stressor
You might call this the "lock it in a box" method. If something at work is stressing you out, leave it at work. Know that is the issue and do not allow it to affect your mood at home. If you are stressed at home, start your day at work fresh and set a focus for yourself.

Talk it Out
Sometimes it helps to just chat about it, perhaps with a spouse or close friend. Talking through the stress can help you to deal with it appropriately. It also offers an opportunity for someone to commiserate or help you avoid triggers that could start mixing worlds.

Focus and Deal
Regardless of what is causing your stress, you have to work through the issue head on. When it is appropriate, you must take action to eliminate the stressor where you can, and reduce its impact on your mood where it is immovable. Dealing with stress is a challenge that faces everyone, but bringing it with you wherever you go only serves to impact your home life and your performance at the office. In the meantime, leave it where you found it until you have time and ability to address it.

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Three Things To Do When You Are Paralyzed By Fear

Several times in my career I have found myself either in a situation or coaching someone in a situation where fear has taken hold and led to inaction. The most frequent time is when I have taken on a new position and am plagued with the thought of "what have I gotten myself into?" Or perhaps it manifests itself with self-doubting questions around whether I am performing at the level I should. Perhaps for you it is a large project that you are not sure you are the right leader for. Maybe it is the big presentation that has you frozen. Regardless the cause, fear can be a pretty powerful anti-motivator in the workplace.

As Dr. Cynthia Thaik notes in her article here on the fear, "Fear has very real effects on the body, and these effects are meant to protect us from danger." But as she notes, when fear overwhelms us, it is not healthy, and it can prevent us from making any progress.

Still, everyone has been there. Crippling self-doubt and not knowing where to begin take over your thoughts and you obsess about the fear itself, without being able to take action to progress beyond it. So what can you do?

Write Everything Down

Often times my paralysis comes from having too many things to do and not knowing where to begin. It's the "I know I have to eat an elephant, but I'm not sure where to start" problem. The answer is always to just start somewhere, but even getting my brain wrapped around that can sometimes be difficult. So how do you move past it? My technique is to just start writing things down. Write everything down. Anything and everything related to what you need to do gets dumped onto paper or into a Word or Powerpoint document. Often times when you just see it written down, the monstrosity of it diminishes, and it becomes a tangible, achievable thing.

Beat Up Your Fear

Come on, what's a fear but a bunch of nonsense words in your head? Honestly, most of the paralysis around fear at work comes from overthinking things and getting wrapped around the idea of the fear. Take a page from the Harry Potter series and start making your fear ridiculous (the Riddikulus charm). Talk through it with yourself in your head. It might go something like this.

Me: You don't have what it takes to do this new job.
Me: Do you think your boss is a moron?
Me; Huh? What does that have to do with your talent level?
Me: Do you think your boss is a moron? Does he or she drool incompetence?
Me: No, but I fail to see how this makes you have skills you don't possess.
Me: Wait, you don't think the boss is an idiot?
Me: No, but.
Me: Then why do you doubt the boss's hiring skills? He or she hired you, so obviously you have the skills that were required.
Me: But I don't know how to use them.
Me: So you acknowledge you have the skills...

And so the conversation goes. The point is, rather than being fixated on the fear (which likely is ridiculous at some level), change the conversation. Make it an outside-looking-in type of discussion with yourself. Figure out what other people see. I have had so many conversations with employees who were missing a skill but were hired for their other skills and could not see their own upside for focusing on the one skill that I knew they had to develop going in. Don't be blinded to the whole situation by the fear. The fear is likely only a small element of the world of reality.

Do Something

The most important thing you can do is anything. Every minute, every hour, that you sit doing nothing, you are letting fear win. Do something. Make motion. Every action you do make chips away one little chisel mark at the block of fear. Two actions make it that much smaller. Eventually you realize there was nothing there at all. Whatever you do, make motion. Keep moving. Be a shark and let inaction be the only thing that you are afraid of in the whole ocean. Move, move, move.

How are you going to tackle your fear today?

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How to Get Rich Quick

Wouldn't you like to get rich overnight? Perhaps you would pick up a Lamborghini like that one in the picture. Or maybe you would just dive in your money, Scrooge McDuck-style. Whatever you would do with it, having it fast is exciting.

While you're at it, you might as well jump on a crash diet that promises to help you drop twenty pounds in less than a week. Those have to be healthy for your body, and what could go wrong?

Oh, and there are some really cool products on the upcoming infomercial that you could spend your newfound riches on.

You could try all sorts of ways to get things faster and fail at most all of them, or you could accept that some things take time. Some things take work. Some things require patience. And sometimes, the reward is amplified by that patience. There are so many examples of people who took ten or twenty years to become an "overnight success." Put in your dues. Keep the end in sight. But don't try to rush everything.

Want to get rich quick? Save your money and make wise investments over a long period of time, then one day, realize you are rich.

Photo credit: jarmoluk on Pixabay

How Low Can You Go?

How little money do you need to survive? The 2015 poverty threshold for a family of four is $24,250 or just over $2,000 per month. By contrast the median household income in the United States was reported at $51,939 as of 2013.

Just like work expands to fill the time allowed, lifestyle often expands to fill the budget allowed. Sure, you might save a little more when you have a little more room in the budget, but most people spend right up to the limit.

What would you do if you were a two-income family and one spouse lost a job? How much flexibility do you have to take a position making two-thirds what you are making now?

Here's a challenge: We'll call it the limbo (and chant "how low can you go" encouragingly as you do it). Take your monthly budget and just look at the expense side. Remove everything that is not a necessity (for definition's sake, necessities likely consist of food, shelter, transportation, clothing, and basic utilities (electric and water, not internet or cell phones)). That's how low you can go. Other items like child care expenses or other expenses that enable you to continue working are pretty tightly coupled in to salary expectations. As you go through the rest of the budget, take a critical eye to it - are there any items you pay just because you have been paying them? I found once that we were paying for a gym membership we had not used in over a year. It was only $19 a month and we didn't want to pay sign up fees the next time we decided to start going regularly. That was just a justification. We cut it and never looked back.

Is there anything you think you could cut out? More importantly, if you had to cut something out tomorrow, what would it be?

Knowing how low your limbo bar can be set is an empowering concept. It lets you have the freedom to explore career options that you could not if your lifestyle and expenses prop up your limbo bar too high.

So, how low can you go?

Photo credit: "Limbo crazy bambou" by Jeanmaxounou - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

5 Keys to a Successful Career

The definition of success in career can vary from person to person, whether position, span of control, money, or otherwise. But no matter what your definition, successful people tend to share these key traits.

Hard Work
Very rarely does success magically appear. Successful people recognize and recognize early that the only way to make something happen is through hard work. Easy tasks can be accomplished by anyone, but the truly dedicated move the needle through working harder than anyone else.

Understanding People
The ability to understand people transcends careers. Strong and successful managers understand the needs of their employees and take action to make them successful. Strong sales people understand the needs of the customer and orchestrate solutions that meet those needs. Strong contributors understand those that they support and anticipate needs before they are spoken.

Hunger
Successful people want to succeed. They want to be better. They want to continue to improve beyond even their own standards of success. They possess a hunger and a drive that motivates them from within. Money and power and other static indicators of success do not motivate successful people as much as their internal hunger and drive does.

Ability to Learn
Very few people are an instant success in their first attempt at anything. They either experience some moderate success, which they learn to amplify, or they experience a failure, which they learn from and move forward. No matter what the experience, they learn, and they adapt. The successful strive to morph into a more successful version of themselves with every experience, good or bad, and look to improve with outside assistance as well (books, speakers, videos, or training).

Luck
Whether timing or circumstance, connections or just fate, the super successful often have a slight element of luck that plays into their success. Some say they make their own luck through a combination of hard work and other traits. More important, though, is the ability to take a lucky event and capitalize on it, maximize its potential, and amplify the results. Every person has some good and bad luck that falls on them. The key is to minimize the impact of the bad and maximize the lift of the good to reach great heights.

What other traits do you notice that lead to success? Let me know in the comments!

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Eat the Hot Pepper

Mark Twain once allegedly said, "Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day." There are various corollary statements and derivatives, but the basic point is this: If you start your day with the worst thing you have to do, it will only look up. Brian Tracy has turned this quote into a full length book called Eat That Frog! (disclosure: that is an affiliate link) that recommends doing the worst task in the morning as a method of reducing procrastination.

I have to say, it's an effective system, and one that we employ in our household to make sure the laundry gets done every weekend. "Eat the frog" is a mantra that we know and use.

But I'm not going to tell you to eat a frog. I am going to tell you to eat a hot pepper.

Have you ever ordered Kung Pao Chicken? The picture above is of that exact dish, which I had for lunch (no, this isn't turning into the Facebook or Twitter "what I had for lunch" post). Kung Pao Chicken is a dish made up of chicken, peppers, celery, peanuts, and a spicy sauce that is flavored by those dried little red peppers. The peppers add spice to the dish simply by being cooked in with the rest, and most people grab those chopsticks and toss those dried little seed pouches to the side. Every now and then, I eat one. Some are spicier than others. Some will try to melt your tongue. Some are flavorless leathery pepper skins. It's a gamble. They all look the same, but some have already used all of the spice and danger to flavor the rest of the food.

So here's the metaphor: eat a red hot pepper at work. What do I mean? Take a risk, make a gamble. Every now and then, you make a leap of faith. You take on a risky assignment or work a project that you can't define as easily as some others. Some of them will be dried and useless. They won't burn you, but you won't learn anything either. Some will be spicy and problematic. With those, you will learn much, including whether or not you like sinking your teeth into such spicy pursuits.

Just like a pile of peppers does not make a meal, the meal lacks flavor if it isn't cooked with them. And once you eat one, it kicks it up a notch.

So identify what your hot peppers are at work, and eat one. Dare yourself.

Another worthless meeting: The Discussion

By now, you should realize that my least favorite type of meeting is "The Public Reading." That said, there are several other types of meetings that I don't particularly enjoy, and I don't think move the needle much with the business. Given the amount of time we all spend in meetings, any efforts to make them more effective should be applauded.

So, as you can see from the title, another meeting I find less than thrilling is "The Discussion." Some meetings might feel a little like they are nothing more than a discussion, and you might begin to wonder if you have fallen into the this kind of a meeting, so let me give you a few tips on how this type of meeting typically goes:

The agenda is to discuss a topic. You'd think this is a dead giveaway, but it really has to devolve worse than that to qualify. Some meetings to discuss may actually have an objective.
At least once during the meeting (and usually three times for an hour-long meeting), one contributor will drive the conversation down such a rat hole that you cannot tell what the topic is from the discussion.
Notes are not taken or are irregular in their structure and message.
The participants favor inclusion and freedom to discuss any topic for as long as desired over productive outcome-based discussion.
At the end of the meeting, another meeting to discuss is likely still required. These are sometimes disguised as "further review" or "deep dives" or "breakouts" but really they are just flags that you did not accomplish your meeting's objective.

If you've attended these types of meetings, they feel a whole lot like work. But they are not accomplishing all that much.

If you think you have been sucked into this type of meeting, there are a few key things you can call out. Be warned: some people just like to talk and don't care if they are accomplishing much, and might take offense if you are asking them to stop rambling.

Ask what the meeting is trying to accomplish. Sometimes, people just don't know. Set a goal of what to accomplish and it will help drive towards it.
Ask who is facilitating (or if you are, facilitate!). Make sure it is clear who is in charge of saying "move to the next topic."
Employ a "parking lot." Off topic conversations can be placed in the parking lot, allowing for determination later of whether or not that is a valid side discussion.
Take notes. Even if there is someone else whose job it is to take notes, you should as well. You may be able to augment the official meeting notes (if any go out).
Don't feed the trolls. Identify who is just there to discuss and who is there to propel the business forward. Spend your energy on the latter.

What other meeting types should we avoid? Drop a comment below and let me know!

Photo credit Sponchia on Pixabay

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