If you are looking for permission to cancel a meeting, consider it granted!

If you aren’t looking for permission to cancel a meeting, let’s hope it means:

• The purpose is clear
• A plan for achieving the purpose exists
• The attendees will focus on the purpose and stick to the plan

You will fight to retain the good meetings. Why? Because good meetings are essential! And, good meetings are a joy to attend!

Afraid to cancel? Or worried that cancelling one will lead to cancelling them all because none of your meetings really have a purpose, a plan, and attendees who can focus on the purpose and follow the plan? 

Then you have a problem. No organization can operate effectively without meetings once you have more than a small handful of employees. If you are grimacing right now, it is time to rethink your meetings or lack thereof!

REASON #1: IF YOU DON’T HAVE A CLEAR PURPOSE, CANCEL THE MEETING.
You must have a purpose. What are you trying to accomplish?

Establishing a clear purpose ought not to be hard, but it isn’t always easy either. It can be hardest if:

• You have a regularly scheduled meeting and believe a bad meeting is better than no meeting at all
• You are trying to do too much with one meeting
• You’ve never been to a good meeting

In determining your purpose, it will be easier to work out the details if you think hard about the specific outcomes you desire. In general, people should leave with:

• A new understanding or perspective
• A shared goal or decision
• A specific assignment
• A new feeling of commitment, ownership or appreciation

REASON #2: IF YOU DON’T HAVE A PLAN TO ACHIEVE THE PURPOSE, CANCEL THE MEETING.
A purpose alone is not enough. I have been to plenty of miserable meetings that had an excellent purpose but no plan. You must have a plan.

A plan involves three components:

• A method: A way to achieve your purpose during the meeting – a sequence of steps and rules for interaction at each step
• A time range for each step – wider for some, narrower for others depending on your purpose and method
• Attendees and their roles, both in preparing and in participating during the meeting

See below for link to “Tips for Planning a Meeting.”

For example, if your reason for meeting is to make a decision, the sequence portion of the meeting is easy:

1. Agree on objectives
2. Identify alternatives
3. Consider risks and ability of alternatives to satisfy objectives

But you still need to know where you stand on each of these three steps coming into the meeting. Are the objectives already agreed? Is someone proposing alternatives or do you need to be creative in finding them? Are you only looking for risks so a final decision can be made?

Only then can you determine timeframes, attendees and preparation responsibilities.

REASON #3: IF YOU OR OTHERS ARE NOT PREPARED, CANCEL THE MEETING.
Lest you miss a tiny tidbit here, note that the first two are all about PREPARATION. Preparation is SO important. And not just preparation by the person calling the meeting! Clearly the person calling the meeting is responsible for clarifying the purpose and being sure that there is a plan for addressing that purpose during the meeting. However, often there are many individuals who must prepare in support of the purpose and the plan. The person calling the meeting must be sure to plan, communicate, and confirm preparation by others.

REASON #4: IF YOUR PLAN BECOMES UNSUITABLE, CANCEL THE REST OF THE MEETING.
The better your preparation, the easier it is to stay focused and follow your plan. Be firm and expect discipline, but be sure to listen. Your plan may have missed the mark!

To distinguish between undisciplined wanderings and new information that calls for a change of plan, consider how the new information affects the situation:

• Are you still clear about your purpose?
• Do you have a method for continuing?
• Do the allotted timeframes still make sense?
• Do you have the right people present?
• Has the necessary preparation been done?

If the answer to any of these questions is ‘no’, stop the meeting.

Be clear about your purpose, find a reasonable plan, and stay focused on the purpose within the plan and your meetings will be a success and a joy.