How to Avoid Writing Meeting Minutes
Imagine this scenario: You’ve just been put in charge of a new project and are responsible for running the weekly update meetings.
What is the first thing you will most likely do in preparation? Create an agenda for tracking meeting minutes.
Pair this with your “Go-Getter” and I’m sure these simple minutes become detailed with due dates, action items, responsibilities, and notes. This is the wrong approach.
Meeting minutes will quickly take over your life, causing you to spend more time on the meeting minutes than actually completing the tasks at hand. They usually start at a page or two and quickly grow into a very cumbersome document.
A picture taken after meeting minutes were eliminated from their workplace.
There are a countless number of articles on the internet that tell you how to write meeting minutes. The problem is that they don’t warn you about the after effects.
In one of my meetings, the minutes have grown to a 10+ page document, like a virus without a cure.
Well, what can you do to prevent this catastrophe? Try to implement one of the following ideas:
1. Have a meeting without the use of meeting minutes
If you can pull off a functional meeting without minutes, you are golden. Being known as the person who doesn’t send out meeting minutes is a GOOD thing.
2. Send a meeting summary in the body of an email
Everyone hates micro-managers. Sending out minutes with a laundry list of action items is a sure-fire way to become one. Try sending out a follow-up email, indicating only the critical items. Most people don’t need to be reminded to send emails or make phone calls (a stretch, I know).
3. Keep the action items short and eliminate the notes
Instead of creating multiple sub-items in the agenda, leave it for the attendees to write down. A simple agenda/meeting minutes with only major bullet points will save you the headache of spending hours entering in lengthy notes for each sub-item. The less data entry, the better.
These quick tips aren’t a guarantee to save you from the pain of meeting minutes, but at least they will give you some hope.
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I will assume this was written by a woman becasue no self-respecting man would ever take notes.
Boss: Hey Patrick, take notes at this meeting.
Me: Hahaha, this guy is crazy, right guys? (Me and friends laugh, High Five)
Boss: (Walks away with head down, Sends email to cancel meeting, cries in office with door closed)
Shamed in front of an internet audience… ouch.