Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting This week we’re doing something a little different - featuring contributions from Set the Agenda (STA) readers! In this issue: A tip Connie wishes everyone used: running agenda documents Amy’s introvert meeting bingo card A warm-up and check out question you can use today (from Lauren and Jen) Relevant reads/listens/follows from Lindsey, Dudney, Susan, and Dave A survey to shape future issues Your...
7 days ago • 5 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter What I learned from eavesdropping on my boss' meetings (and how to recreate those learning moments on purpose) Warm-up and checkout questions you can use today Q&A: How do I get access to meetings that would help me grow without overstepping? Your weekly bird break We used to joke that we worked in a call center. The Boston-based contingent of our national team sat in cubicles...
14 days ago • 7 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter A 2009 essay on maker vs. manager schedules and why it still resonates How to apply the distinction to yourself, your team, and your calendar Warm-up and checkout questions you can use today Your weekly bird break A big thank you to Set the Agenda reader Dudney Sylla, Partnership Director at Axim Collaborative, who put this 2009 article on my radar a couple months ago. I’ve...
21 days ago • 5 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter Six powerful ways the chat can transform your virtual meetings Q&A: How do I keep the chat from going off the rails? Warm-up and checkout questions you can use today (in the chat, of course) Your weekly bird break For my whole career I’ve worked with people in other states or countries. Pre-pandemic, my team was dispersed across the US and we periodically held heavily...
28 days ago • 8 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter What grocery store checkouts can teach us about meeting norms A step-by-step resource for setting norms for the first time Warm-up and check-out questions to try with your team this week Your weekly bird break Costco has clear systems. When you get to the checkout, you hand them your membership card, they take your cart and start scanning items. Or wait, do you push your cart?...
about 1 month ago • 6 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter What do meal prepping and meeting leadership have in common? Warm-up and checkout questions you can use today Q: When am I supposed to find time to plan my meetings? Your weekly bird break When I first started working, I started meal prepping, too. Every Saturday morning I’d plan my whole menu for the week and start Monday with 21 Tupperware containers and Mason jars ready to...
about 1 month ago • 6 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter Why you don’t necessarily need more meetings to get your message to stick A framework to weave your strategy into every meeting Warm-up and check-out questions you can use today Your weekly bird break It is hard enough to mobilize people to row in the same direction when they know where they’re going. When they don’t understand or internalize the destination, that’s the recipe...
about 2 months ago • 7 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter How to turn ‘nice to meet you’ coffee chats into a team-wide win Warm-up and check-out questions you can use today Q&A: How do I make time for thoughtfully onboarding without overscheduling myself? Your weekly bird break Several years ago, when a new hire joined my team, a colleague shared an idea that shifted how I’ve thought about onboarding meetings ever since. I’d already...
about 2 months ago • 5 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter Why I downloaded an app I swore I’d never use and what it taught me about meeting prep Q&A: I want to use a warm-up question, but that won’t work in my company culture. What can I do? Warm-up and check-out questions you can use this week Weekly bird break A baby was born in my extended family last year. I wanted updates and I was not getting them frequently. I asked more...
2 months ago • 5 min read
Set the Agenda: Quality Meetings Don't Just Happen A newsletter from Jess Britt Consulting In this week's newsletter Why “it could have been an email” is rarely the whole story Tips for building stronger asynchronous communication norms Warm-up and check-out questions you can use today Your weekly bird break When I ask leaders for their biggest meeting pain point, the one I hear most frequently is, “meetings that should have been an email!” We’ve all been in those meetings and I have vented...
2 months ago • 7 min read