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July 26, 2005
Irresistable tip
Found this over at 43 Folders in a list of tips:
Keep Meetings Short and On Topic: Write up an agenda. Make everyone in the meeting drink 16 oz of water as the meeting begins. Conduct the meeting with everyone standing up. Everyone will stay on topic, and when about 30-45 minutes is up, everyone will have to pee.
Loved it.
When I was younger, my family camped for our vacations. We had a rule that no one could go to the bathroom until the tent was up. Result? Tent set-up became v-e-r-y efficient.
One of the best television representations of efficient meeting ever broadcast was in LA Law. The partners sat down (barely), quickly statused every case, got short, succinct input from others, and left. Efficient, and seldom duplicated in real life where meetings become the way to attempt to impress superiors, or to wander through many incarnations of "what if" or other productivity inhibiting activities.
I used to have a letter size poster that said "Bored? Lonely? Don't want to work? Call a meeting!" I rather like the idea of the above as a companion poster.
Posted by cageyer at July 26, 2005 10:12 AM
Comments
LOL. Having watched the expression on your face when a meeting gets seriously off topic, I can imagine your delight at having found this remedy. & good luck getting everybody to drink that much water; instead, our crowd will argue about whether it should be water, tea, Coke, or coffee :)
Posted by: senioritis at July 26, 2005 10:58 PM
And here I thought people brought lots of food and drink to meetings just to be sociable! LOL. I've also heard of meetings being held in stairwells. Even if people try and sit down, they won't want to for very long because it is not very comfortable.
Posted by: Marcia at July 27, 2005 09:57 AM