Living in a digital age, it’s easy to bypass face-to-face meetings in favor of emails, voicemail, and other automation. For an introvert, this feels like heaven. Being able to avoid large groups, small talk, and people is generally preferable, but it doesn’t make for good business. While introverts may resist the idea of meetings, they do have an important role.
Everyone Knows the Problem with Meetings
There’s a reason meetings get a bad rap. Poorly run meetings are the bane of business. It doesn’t matter if you’re an introvert or extrovert, a bad meeting is a waste of time, energy, and money. Here are some of the problems with meetings:
- They run too long
- They aren’t structured
- There’s poor leadership
- No action is taken
As an introvert, it may feel safer, easier, and better to forgo meetings altogether rather than deal with the hot messes that may occur, but that’s simply not realistic. Well-run meetings can be an effective way to convey information, build trust, and help your team bond. The answer isn’t how to avoid meetings but how to make them better.
L10 Meetings – EOS® Style
Introverts do well in small groups. The Entrepreneurial Operating System® suggests that meetings keep watch over the pulse of an organization. Therefore, EOS® meetings known as Level 10 or L10 meetings, are held:
- weekly
- the same start and end time
- on the same day for each team within the organization
- last for ninety minutes
- uses a structured, preset agenda
There is NEVER a question about what can be discussed or what should be done in the meeting. Usually, the team decides who will host and who will scribe each meeting. For the introvert, hosting small-scale meetings held under 90 minutes with a preset agenda to follow is an excellent way to share information and team build without the drawbacks of poorly run, unorganized meetings.
Here are three EOS® tips for introverts to host better meetings-
1. The 90 Minute Agenda
Effective meetings are planned prior, start on time, and end on time. (Honest!) EOS® lays out the structure for each meeting.
Segue – each team member tells one professional win and one personal win – no discussion 5 min
Scorecard or Data – update on whatever numbers/stats you are watching 5 min
Rock Review (Project Updates) – announced as on track or off track – no discussion here 5 min
Customer/Employee Headlines – quick announcements or shout outs 5 min
To-Do List – review items from the last meeting that team members needed to complete 5 min
IDS – Identify, Discuss, Solve – list of items added by team members all week that need discussion 60 min
Conclusion – review new To-Dos and rate the meeting. 5 min
With practice, this becomes easy and normal.
2. No Rabbit Trails
As an introvert, it may be appealing to let others take the reins of a meeting and do the talking. An EOS® L-10 agenda gives the tools and even the script to help the introverted meeting facilitator get the team focused and back on track.
What is so great is that the team knows the script, as well, so when the facilitator uses the script to get back on track, the members know it and act accordingly with no argument. (Honest!)
The trick here as an introverted facilitator is to read the room (even a Zoom room) and know when it’s time to move to the next thing. If another team member tries to “take over,” the facilitator script can cue that member to back down.
3. Aim for closure
As much as possible, avoid tabling or non-action. Be decisive, find consensus, and get to the bottom of an issue one at a time. The L10 agenda allows sixty minutes to work through the list of issues. The team picks the top three most important issues and they discuss to solve in order.
If the whole sixty minutes is used on the first Issue, L10 rules say that is okay. The point is that each issue is actually solved and if the meeting concludes solving that one issue, it is considered a successful meeting. If needed assign To-Dos that will be followed up with at the next L10.
The Bottom Line
Hosting meetings for your business may feel like the least favorite thing about your day, but you can be a highly effective leader by keeping meetings short, sweet and effective especially when you use the Entrepreneurial Operating System’s Level 10 meeting agenda.
Introvert, you CAN run positive, productive, and consistent meetings that benefit and bolster your business to thrive.
If you want to learn more about the Entrepreneurial Operating System®, check out these resources:
){kind=link}