The Meaning of a Meeting

You know that moment when your calendar pings and it’s yet another meeting invite? You haven’t even finished your tea, and boom—“Weekly Alignment Touchpoint Review Sync.” Whatever that means. I sometimes wonder if these meetings are just clever illusions to make us feel useful. A corporate magic trick. Watch closely: here’s a meeting… to prepare for another meeting… to schedule yet another meeting. Presto.

The Agenda is the Real MVP

Every meeting has an agenda. Whether we follow it or not is another story. Half the time, the agenda could just say:

• Waffle for ten minutes

• Mention KPIs, or value no one understands & care

• Nod sagely while secretly checking emails

And yet we all show up. Because heaven forbid we miss that one slide deck update that changes everything. (It never does.)

Let’s Talk About Something We Can’t Change

Here’s the thing—most topics raised in meetings are like trying to stop a cyclone with a paper umbrella. You sit there, nodding thoughtfully, while someone explains global economic trends or system limitations clearly engineered in another galaxy. What are we meant to do with this information? Manifest control through sheer willpower?

But Hey, Growth and Team Bonding, Right?

Now, I’m not totally heartless. I get that meetings are supposed to be about collaboration and growth. We’re told it’s good for visibility, for building connections, for aligning on goals. And maybe, just maybe, if the stars align and Mercury’s not in retrograde, something useful might happen.

It’s a bit like going to the gym: half the benefit is just showing up. Even if you only lifted a pen.

Everybody’s Invited. Whether You Want to Be or Not.

Politeness kills. Well, productivity anyway. Somewhere along the line, someone decided that to be “transparent” and “inclusive”, we must CC the entire company into every conversation. Just in case someone might have a valuable insight from the back row of a totally unrelated department.

It’s a noble idea, until ten people are all talking in circles and no one remembers what the question was.

Could We Survive Without Meetings? Spoiler: Yes

Imagine a world where you open your calendar… and it’s empty. No “catch-ups”, no “stand-ups”, no “check-ins”. Just actual work, done in actual silence. Revolutionary. Radical. Almost… productive.

Truth is, a company can thrive without endless meetings. Not none at all—but fewer, sharper, more purposeful ones. Like a well-made knife instead of a plastic spork.

What If We Treated Each Other Like Customers?

Here’s a thought. What if we stopped trying to please everyone in meetings and started thinking more like we do with customers? Focused. Outcome-driven. Brief. No one wants to listen to every department’s wishlist. We just want the stuff that matters to move forward.

Less “what does everyone want to discuss,” more “what problem are we solving.”

Because at the end of the day—sorry, I mean, at the close of the business afternoon—it’s not about how many meetings we had. It’s about what we actually got done between them.