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I am no stranger to writing about meetings, and I’m not sorry. The struggle is real. Talk to any in-house counsel and the likelihood that their day is composed of back-to-back meetings is high — although this sentiment is not likely limited to the legal department, and is probably shared by anyone in Corporate America.
Upon reflection, my prior tips are only really helpful if you own the meeting. If it is your meeting, you can obviously set the agenda, control the flow, and identify and assign next steps aka “homework” or “follow up.” But what if you’re just an invitee, and it is not your meeting or project?
Here are some tips that help me die a little less inside from a potential unproductive time-suck.
Ask for Pre-Work
If and when you are invited to a meeting where there is no context provided, consider reaching out to the organizer over chat and informally asking if there is anything to read or review before the meeting. Yes, you are reading that correctly. Before you balk at why I would suggest you ask for more work when you already have a lot on your plate, recall that the strategy is to maximize the efficiency of the meeting. Previewing PowerPoint decks (which business folks seem to love) or getting the high-level background can help you be better prepared for the ask. But try to keep it easy and informal to prevent creating a pre-meeting meeting. If there’s something to review, great! If not, you’ll just catch it at the meeting. Obviously, note your audience to discern if this is appropriate. For example, I would not do this if I were invited to a meeting with an executive, but I might reach out to their assistant to glean any context.
Identify The Why Or The Ask
Sometimes the why or the ask is revealed through the pre-work, but if not, be sure to clarify the why or the ask at some point during the meeting. Ideally, I personally like to know the why or the ask before factual background because, for me, it helps better put the information shared into context. But as a relationship-builder, in-house counsel should also be mindful of not interrupting clients when they share. Bottom line, make sure you know the ask before the meeting ends, presuming there is one.
Bring Up Next Steps
I strongly believe in taking notes — but if you’re not inclined to do so, at least consider knowing what the next steps are before the end of the meeting. For me, even if it is not my meeting, I want to make sure that I know what my “homework” is or clearly confirm that I don’t have any. Where you probably don’t want to end up is having a meeting where there is a lot of discussion, a lot of ideas and suggestions, but then everyone has to drop off for their next call, and without clear next steps, no one does anything and you have to do the meeting again.
Network
Finally, even if the meeting was an FYI only, and you silently believe that it was unnecessary for you to attend, you can still “make lemonade out of lemons,” and use the opportunity to broaden your network. If the meeting included someone you have not worked with before, consider reaching out to that new person only for the purpose of getting to know them and their role, and by extension, another part of the business.
Meyling “Mey” Ly Ortiz is in-house at Toyota Motor North America. Her passions include mentoring, championing belonging, and a personal blog: TheMeybe.com. At home, you can find her doing her best to be a “fun” mom to a toddler and preschooler and chasing her best self on her Peloton. You can follow her on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/meybe/). And you knew this was coming: her opinions are hers alone.
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