why meetings rot your brain (and waste your time)

This from "Rework" by 37Signals, page 108. Please share with anyone you're planning to meet with anytime soon:


Why meetings are toxic:

•They're usually about words and abstract concepts, not real things
•They usually convey an abysmally small amount of information per minute
•They drift off-subject easier than a Chicago cab in a snowstorm
•They require thorough preparation that most people don't have time for
•They frequently have agendas so vague that nobody is really sure of the goal
•They often include at least one moron who inevitably gets his turn to waste everyone's time with nonsense
•Meetings procreate. One meeting leads to another meeting leads to another...

I share this as much for me as for anyone I meet with(I promise not to feed into these if you promise too). If we seriously must work in a "do more with less" environment, I suggest we edit this notion to read "do more, waste less." As in waste less of all of our time.

That is all.