How to Reduce Meetings & Reclaim Your Time

“Are you free to hop on a quick Zoom?”

If you had a nickel for every time you heard that question, you’d be spending your days in a beachfront villa without having to think about work ever again.

Let’s be honest: Many meetings can be a waste of time

As humor writer Dave Barry quipped:

“If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be ‘meetings.”

At Software Blade, we barely do meetings.

Here’s our best advice for having fewer meetings — and saving more time

Before you schedule a meeting, have it in writing

Try discussing your topic with a quick email or Slack message.

This way, each party can respond when it’s convenient for them, saving you both hours in the process.

Create detailed process documentation

This way people can easily reference how you do things. 

The more detailed your internal process documentation is, the fewer times you’ll need to meet to “align on a project” or “nail some things down.”

Practice your writing

A big reason people meet too often is that they aren’t comfortable writing.

But this can change.

Instead of relying on meetings, practice your written communication skills. This pays off in many ways.

Our opinion?

Try your best to avoid meetings unless they’re absolutely necessary. We think you’ll enjoy the results.