How to Have Only “Productive” Meetings: A Guide to Effective Meetings and Team Mindset.

A Practical Guide to Making Time for Progress and Eliminating Unproductive Meetings

Published in

Nova. Blog.

9 min readSep 4, 2023

“I have so much work, but my calendar is packed with meetings today, making it difficult to find time for actual progress.”
“It’s Friday, and I haven’t made any progress this week because my schedule was filled with meetings.”
“I feel overwhelmed; I have a ton of tasks to complete, but I can’t seem to find the time. My day is filled with back-to-back meetings, and the few hours in between are hardly enough to get started before the next meeting.”

In today’s continuous stream of meetings teams often feel overwhelmed, hindering their ability to make meaningful progress on essential tasks and projects. This is a common issue affecting millions of workplaces, especially those that rely on collaboration and client interaction.

Image: Meeting memes

Many team members feel they have little control over their time, with work dictated by others’ priorities and a jam-packed meeting schedule. It has become increasingly common to hear phrases like, “I have five meetings today,” as if attending meetings were the primary job function, sidelining a results-driven and hands-on approach to work.

Image: Meeting memes

But it doesn’t have to be this way!

It’s time to seize control and reclaim your time for productive work. In this practical guide, we’ll explore effective strategies to create more time for progress while bidding farewell to unproductive meetings.

1. Self-Assessment

Begin by evaluating your current meeting commitments. Take a critical look at your calendar and identify meetings that may not significantly contribute to your productivity or your team’s goals. Ask yourself:

Is this meeting necessary?
Am I an essential participant in this meeting?
Could the meeting be more efficient or replaced with asynchronous communication?

Lead by example and encourage team members to provide an agenda and clear objectives for any meetings. If these elements are missing, consider saying “no” to attending. As a leader or manager, implement team rules supporting this initiative and encourage team members to decline meetings that lack these essential components.

2. Assess the Meeting Landscape

Gain a better understanding of your team’s meeting load by sending out a survey. Ask questions such as:

In the past week, how many meetings did you have involving two or more participants?
Is this the typical number of meetings you have each week, or was it an exception?
How many one-on-one meetings or conversations did you have last week?
How frequently are check-in meetings scheduled in your week?
Does your team use task management or other platforms to track progress?

The questions we recommend asking:

Your department: [ Product] [Marketing] [Sales] [ HR] …
How many meetings involving 2 or more participants did you have in the past week?
Is this quantity of meetings typical on a weekly basis, or was last week an exception? [I usually have this many] [I usually have a few more] [I usually have fewer]
How many one-on-one meetings or conversations with another individual did you engage in during the past week?
Was this number consistent with your usual one-on-one meeting frequency?
On a weekly basis, how many of these meetings were check-ins, primarily aimed at sharing status updates? [Once a month or less] [Twice a month] [Once a week] [Two to three times a week] [Almost daily] [More than five times a week]
Does your team utilize any task management or other platforms to monitor progress? [No] [No, because it didn’t work in the past] [Yes, but many individuals do not keep it up to date] [Yes, but each person uses a different one] [Other] [Yes, we use it daily]
How frequently did you participate in meetings last week? How often did you actively contribute by speaking? [Rarely or almost never] [Only in a few meetings] [In every meeting at least once, but not a very active contributor] [I actively contribute in all meetings] [I often lead most of the meetings]
How frequently do you find yourself questioning why you were invited to a particular meeting? [Never] [A few times a month] [Once a week] [A few times a week] [A few times a day]
What changes would you make if you had 20% fewer meetings?
Do meetings overall hinder your ability to complete work, or do they facilitate productivity?
Choose one of the following to describe yourself: [Doer] [Analytical person] [Story-teller] [Coach or Mediator] [Creative] [Organizer]
Over the past month, how would you estimate your time distribution across these areas: Meetings, Updating reports or people on progress, Administrative work (emails, accountability, paperwork, etc.), Creating output, Others? Please define by percentage.
On a weekly basis, how many of these meetings are recurring and take place every week? [No recurring weekly meetings, perhaps a few monthly] [Once a week or every two weeks] [Twice a week] [Three times a week] [Four times a week or more]
Do you consider these recurring meetings essential, and if so, what percentage would you deem as essential (e.g., 5%, 10%, 50%)?
Of all the meetings you attend (including recurring ones), how many are initiated by your direct team or department?
Among your various meetings, how many have team-building, personal growth, or team health objectives on a monthly basis?
Do you feel like you belong and are welcomed by the team?
Please identify at least two meetings that you believe are entirely unproductive and provide their names.

3. Implement Meeting Rules

Define clear rules for meetings within your team or organization:

Agenda and Meeting Objective: All meetings must have a well-defined agenda and a clear objective. Meetings lacking these elements should be subject to refusal.
Meetings-Free Focus Time: Allocate specific blocks of time during the week as “meetings-free focus time.” During these periods, team members can concentrate on their work without distractions.
Focus Hours: Establish designated “focus hours” when team members turn off emails, Slack messages, and other distractions to concentrate on tasks requiring deep focus. This goes beyond meeting-free days and ensures minimal interruptions.
Small Meetings: Keep most meetings under five to eight participants to promote active engagement and inclusion. Define when exceptions to this rule apply.

4. Reduce and Reframe

Take action to reduce unproductive meetings:

Trim the Meeting Fat: Remove 40–60% of progress or check-in meetings from your calendar. Encourage team members to update their to-do lists daily using task management software such as ClickUp, Asana, or Nova. This practice fosters transparency and keeps everyone informed about progress without meetings.
Embrace Asynchronous Communication: Shift 30–60% of meetings to asynchronous formats. Share updates or convey information through tools like Loom videos. This approach is particularly effective for routine updates or informational sessions. Use Nova to enhance asynchronous collaboration, making it feel like a meeting without the meeting.
Strategic Meetings Only: Reserve synchronous meetings for critical discussions, team-building sessions, workshops, or complex problem-solving. Save these face-to-face interactions for situations where they truly add value.

Here is an example of an async meeting that is collaborative.

Nova’s session

How to proceed with this? Determining the best approach will depend on various factors such as your team’s size, their adaptability to new technologies, and more. Thus, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all answer, but here are a few suggestions:

If your organization and team require a transition period, consider the following steps:

Select one or two meetings that occur weekly and can be transitioned to asynchronous (async) formats. For instance, choose meetings focused on information sharing, gathering feedback, or obtaining approvals. Whenever possible, prioritize those led by a manager to set an example. This approach also allows the leadership team to familiarize themselves with the process, providing the team with an opportunity to envision how it will work.
Additionally, introduce at least one new rule initially. For example, designate one day a week as “meeting-free” or establish a requirement that all meetings must have an agenda and a clearly defined objective. Without these elements, individuals can choose not to attend.
After the first month or within the first 60 days, consider removing two more meetings. This time, some of these changes can be managed by the team itself.
Gradually introduce more changes over time, allowing the team to adapt progressively.

It’s crucial to emphasize that leaders should lead by example and be the first to adapt and demonstrate the new way of doing things. Ensure that all leaders feel confident using the new platforms being integrated and comprehending the new rules.

If your team is small and adaptable to new technologies and changes, you may opt for a training and informative session. In this scenario, you’ll define new team rules and select meetings to replace with asynchronous formats first. Make it clear to everyone that any newly created meetings of this type must be conducted asynchronously.

In this context, here are the meetings I recommend transitioning to async initially:

Meetings where you seek feedback or require participants to share their knowledge. For instance, when presenting a new idea, proposal, or design and seeking input or ensuring alignment with specific criteria or requirements. Conduct these asynchronously using Nova. Share your proposal through a Loom video and add it to a Nova session. Pose the same questions to participants as you would in a traditional meeting.
Meetings with multiple participants to review and approve something. Whether it’s a new design, proposal, strategy, or project, encourage your team or clients to review and approve it at their convenience. This allows them time to thoroughly assess the proposal, provide feedback, pose questions, and grant approval while considering others’ input. Although asynchronous, it replicates the feel of a meeting, with the added benefit of greater participation.
Informative meetings such as project updates, company news, or team changes. Usually, only one person talks during this meeting and the objective is to inform the team about changes or updates. Transition some of these meetings to asynchronous formats. Create a Loom video easily or utilize both Loom and Nova for a more collaborative approach, allowing you to ask questions and facilitate discussions.
Initial ideation sessions where you introduce a problem or idea and want participants to begin generating ideas or outlining requirements. Given that early stages often don’t require in-person meetings, create an asynchronous space for idea generation, such as an idea wall.
Meetings designed to explain expectations or guide the team’s thinking and approach to deliverables. Whether you’re introducing a framework or providing guidance on expectations, asynchronous communication is suitable for this purpose.

By progressively implementing these changes and ensuring clear communication and training, your team can make a smooth transition to more productive and efficient meeting practices.

Tip: Don’t start from scratch — leverage some of our templates for async meetings.

Learn more about asynchronous meetings at Nova.

5. Communicate and Educate

Effective communication is crucial for successful implementation:

Share your new meeting rules and guidelines with your team or colleagues, ensuring everyone understands the rationale and benefits of reducing meetings.
Lead by example as a leader or team member to demonstrate your commitment to focused work and efficient communication.

6. Monitor and Adapt

Track the impact of your efforts to reduce unproductive meetings:

Regularly review your team’s adaptation to the changes. Are meetings becoming more purposeful? Is productivity increasing?
Encourage team members to provide feedback on the new meeting practices and use their input to refine your approach and make necessary adjustments.

It’s time to break free from the cycle of unproductive meetings and create more time for meaningful progress. By assessing your meeting commitments, implementing clear meeting rules, reducing unnecessary meetings, embracing asynchronous communication, and fostering effective communication within your team, you can make a significant difference in your work environment.

Remember, the goal is not just to have fewer meetings, but to ensure that the meetings you do have are truly productive and contribute to your team’s success. By following this practical guide, you’ll be well on your way to a more efficient and effective workday.

Are you actively pursuing a more flexible work environment while also striving to cut down on the number of meetings in your organization? We’d love to hear about your experiences, the strategies you’ve experimented with, and any hurdles you’ve encountered along the way. Share your insights and challenges with us!

Share your experience with us and leave a comment :)