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Time is not a renewable resource. Time is the one thing you can’t get back. Money, sales and even trees can be replenished.

So when it comes to the biggest time-burner in business, prevention is the best policy!

Yes, you can get a poorly planned meeting back on the rails, but why even expose yourself in the first place?

In my article “Sick of Wasting Time on Meetings? Try this” I outlined some simple points to hold effective meetings. The hugely popular and controversial flowchart WAIT (Why Am I Talking?) is a humorous guide and reminder for all to respect each other in meetings.

But you need to answer this question first:

Why Are We Meeting?

Use the following tips:

1. Before accepting a meeting invite

2. When inviting others to a meeting.

3. When planning a meeting.

Note: These do apply to business owners and entrepreneurs!

Are we meeting to plan a meeting?

I know we humans are social beings (most of us) and like gathering...

A friend of mine says people hate meetings because:

1. They don’t start on time.
2. They don’t finish on time.
3. What’s in the middle is a waste of time!

It’s true a lot of meetings are a waste of time. Unproductive meetings can cost your business big time. 5 people times 1 hour = 5 hours. Multiply that by everyone’s hourly value. You better be increasing production or don’t hold the meeting.

Not only is it the wasted hours, it’s the lost production time. So unnecessary meetings are a double loss when they are not effective.

Here’s a few tips on how to have shorter and more effective meetings:

• Define the purpose of the meeting.
• Define the outcome of the meeting.
• Have a timed agenda and someone in charge.
• Facts—not opinions!
• Keep people on-point. (Only talk about matters relating to their job)

Let’s take each point:

1. Define the purpose of the meeting.

Why are we holding this meeting? If you can’t answer...