Meetings

What Is Your Meeting Closer

One of the most important elements of a meeting comes at the very, very endthe meeting closer. A great meeting closer should leave your staff feeling motivated, prepared, and aware of what they must do next.

So, how do you approach this in your meeting closer?

Who, What, and When

Always close your staff meetings with this simple question: “Who’s doing what, and by when?”

Have each person in the meeting acknowledge what they’re committed to doing, and by when. This ensures that people don’t start projects based on items that were merely being discussed in the meeting. You also make it nearly impossible for people to leave the meeting without outlining their next steps.

Even if you’ve already covered the who, what, and when throughout the meeting, summarizing and repeating it makes your employees feel confident that they’re doing the right thing and heard you correctly. Repetition is key.

Knowing What’s Next

After you’ve closed the meeting itself, you need to make sure that you know if another meeting is necessary, and when, and if any other participants should’ve been present. The knowledge of if another meeting is necessary comes with knowing your employees and their work process, gauging the reactions of your employees through the meeting, and the extent of the task at hand.

The process can always be refined, and it’s important you remain open to that. Never close a meeting without everyone knowing their exact deliverables. Also, make sure your employees know if there will be a future follow-up meeting and what they need to get done before that.

“You can close the meeting by briefly sharing next steps. Consider reviewing the steps for each attendee or department, depending on the size of your meeting. You may also use this time to remind attendees when and where the next meeting will take place.” – Indeed

Acknowledging Achievements

During your meeting closer, don’t forget to thank your employees for coming, thank them for the new work they’ve been assigned, and acknowledge any of their achievements. A great meeting closer leaves employees feeling motivated and inspired. What better way of doing this than acknowledging that you, their leader, see them and care about the work they’re doing.

“The end of the meeting is also the time to thank anyone who has not been thanked at the beginning of the meeting or anyone who deserves a second thank you. Congratulations or Good-luck can also be offered here to someone who has experienced something new, such as receiving a promotion, getting married, or having a baby.” – English Club

Your meeting closer is just as important as everything else in your meeting, if not more. It might seem redundant and involve some repetition, but it all has its value. Meeting closers are key to having a motivated and productive team when it’s over, so make sure to always make time for a stellar closer!

What do you like to do in your meeting closers? Let us know in the comments below!

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in November 2011 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

How to Show Respect for People’s Time

Everyone has different things on their plate and doesn’t want their time to be wasted. No matter how busy you think you are compared to someone else, you never really know what’s going on. That’s why it’s important to always, no matter who it is or what you know about the person, to show respect for their time. You’d certainly want them to do the same for you.

Here are some ways to be respectful of someone’s time. It’ll benefit them, you, and your business because an appreciation of time increases productivity.

Close the Door

It’s so common for people to show up late to things, be it meetings, courses, etc, and expect it not to matter. This shows disrespect for your time and if you let people get away with this it shows disrespect for the people that actually show up in time.

“Punctuality is not just a virtue, it’s about respect. When everyone is respectful of each other’s time meetings run a lot better. If someone decides to be late, the frustration the other people feel about that can impact the quality of their contribution to the meeting.” – Cameron Herold

When you’re hosting a lecture or a meeting, you can say that you’ll start at a certain time, but when you actually start at that time instead of waiting for stragglers, it gives off a very strong message of respect. It’s almost sad how surprised people will be when you actually start on time. If people aren’t present at the start of class, or haven’t returned to the class after a break, shut the door and get started without them.

Not only does this show respect for the people present, but it also keeps things on track.

Compress Time

When you are booking a meeting you should try to ‘compress time’ where you can. Take whatever time you immediately think you’ll need for a meeting and cut that number in half for the booking period. So, instead of a one hour meeting, book it for thirty minutes. Sounds crazy, right?

Meetings take the time you give to them, so limit that time. Maybe cut it in half if the usual meetings tend to feel slow, and you can increase productivity immensely.” – Cameron Herold

Like so many other obligations, meetings tend to fill the space you give to them. By compressing that time, you increase everyone’s productivity and implement a highly profitable system of time management.

Be Prepared

Simply being prepared by doing your work on time, preparing for meetings, and managing your own time well can show respect for other people’s time.

“Frantically searching for a pen, borrowing a notebook, and rifling through your bag for your files not only looks unprofessional but can take up precious time. Before meeting with someone, make sure you’ve appropriately gathered and prepared everything you need for your meeting.” – The Order Expert

Gathering your notes and starting up your computer during meeting time shows a lot of disrespect for the people there. They didn’t come to watch you dig around for notes, that could have been done long before they arrived. You wouldn’t want them taking up your time with tedious little tasks.

Showing respect for people’s time is vital for a productive and healthy workplace. When you respect other people’s time, they’ll respect yours.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in December 2009 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness. 

How to Get Your Meetings Back on Track

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It’s likely that everyone has been part of a meeting where practically nothing gets resolved. If you make big decisions for a company, that shouldn’t be the norm.

It’s important to find ways to get your meetings back to how they’re supposed to be—productive and informative.

Here are just a few ways you can get back on track with your meetings.

Create an Agenda

It’s important that you write down a clear, solid agenda before your meeting. It’s far too easy to go in with a broad idea of what you want to accomplish and then end up getting off track or circling around the same ideas for far too long. The meeting will end and you’ll realize “Wait, what did we actually decide on?”

“It is no question that every productive meeting absolutely needs a solid agenda ahead of time. Everyone attending needs to know that the meeting has a purpose and, to keep it productive, the meeting needs to stick to that purpose—get rid of the chance for stray topics to get you off track.” – Cameron Herold

Start your meeting with a clear purpose that’s also been written down in the agenda for extra measures. You should also create a bulleted list of action items when you send the agenda to your team. They need to be clear on what is being accomplished by this meeting, too.

Invite People Who NEED to Attend

It’s easy to invite more people than you need to a meeting “just in case.” Don’t do that. Think about who you’re inviting and if they really need to be there. With people attending that aren’t vital, you’ll find it’s a lot easier to lose track of what needs to be done.

“Google caps attendees at 10 and Amazon has a “two pizza” rule (i.e., never have a meeting where you can’t feed the whole group with two pies). It all serves one purpose: only invite essential personnel, and you’ll find things stay on track.” – Forbes

By inviting people that aren’t essential, not only are you risking the meeting’s productivity but you’re also just wasting that employee’s time. Everyone attending the meeting should have a specific purpose if you want to get your meetings back on track.

Be a Leader with Purpose

Getting meetings on track and keeping them on track requires a strong leader. As a leader, you need to lead every meeting with purpose and confidence. Just being confident about what needs to get done does increase the chances of it actually getting done.

“Great meetings happen when you have great leaders. It’s not always easy to be the one ensuring things are moving along, but someone has to be accountable for running meetings that don’t suck.” – Forbes

As the leader, you set the tone for the meeting. It is ultimately up to your skills and leadership abilities as to if things are going to get done or not.

The leader is required to keep things on track, even when conversations are starting to stray. You want to be liked by your employees and coworkers and that sometimes means being tempted to join them in straying from the topic of the meeting. It’s up to you to be the one who steers the conversation back, even if that means being the bad guy.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in December 2009 and had been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness. 

Mind Blowing Door Openers

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Two years ago I was speaking at the 20th anniversary of Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) in Las Vegas. It is not unusual for people to come up after I present to say hello, ask questions, or ask for my contact info. Not a big deal and it usually doesn’t result in much more than a couple second interactions. And ya, this time was different.

A young EO guy I’d never met before named John Ruhlin engaged me in conversation and asked if it was me who was coming to Cleveland to speak at their EO Chapter the following week. He also asked what my plans were the night before. I answered yes that in fact I was going to be coming to his city and that I would more than likely be taking advantage of the dollar being weak and shopping at my favorite store, Brooks Brothers.

We made plans to grab dinner and see a Cavs basketball game after I was done shopping. Someone offering to grab dinner and a sporting event is a nice gesture in business, but not a big deal or out of the ordinary, right??

Well, as it would turn out, coming in that day was a traveler’s nightmare. I had multiple delays and had to beg my way onto a flight that was pulling away from the jet way. I had to text John and let him know that I was coming in 5 hours later than expected and that I understood if he wanted to cancel. He casually reassured me that it was no problem, that he was waiting at the bar in my hotel and that I should get checked in, take my bags upstairs and come down refreshed for a great night. I thought, even though I didn’t get to go shopping I can still enjoy a great meal and take in a little Lebron James. All in all not a bad way to spend an evening in Cleveland. That is what I was expecting…

I got to the hotel and when I went to walk into my room, my jaw dropped. Spread out folded and hanging across my entire room were dozens of suit jackets, pants, shirts, and sweaters…and not just any dress clothes, they were Brooks Brothers dress clothes. My entire room looked like I had walked into a Brooks Brothers retail store. And it was all in my size.

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. John, the EO guy had casually asked me what size I wore in an email that week because he said he wanted to send me his company T-shirt.

He’d just pulled off this amazing, mind-altering experience of service (what he calls “strategic appreciation”) and we weren’t even at dinner yet. I took as many pictures on my phone as I could, texted them to my wife, and realized I needed to call John DiJulius to change the example I gave him for his book on the best customer service I had ever experienced.

When I walked into the bar, John looked up with a grin and said, “You enjoyed your Brooks Brothers store?”

Over dinner and the game John explained how using ultra high-end gifts helps him land meetings with CEOs or keep top client relationships amazing.

One of John’s companies, Ruhlin Promotion Group, specialized in doing crazy things like sending a $500 Cutco knife set in 5 consecutive packages to a CEO asking them to “carve out time” for a meeting.

After the Brooks Brothers experience and yes the awesome Cutco knives he sent me engraved with my company BackPocket COO logo, I will meet John Ruhlin anytime, anyplace, and refer him to anybody because I can only hope more and more people get to experience the Ruhlin Promotion Group treatment first hand.

Meetings Suck…

Actually, meetings don’t suck.  We suck at running meetings…

We’d never send our kids off to little league without teaching them the basics, like throwing & catching a ball, and how to at least swing the bat.

Why then, do companies send their employees into meetings – to attend them, to plan them, or to run them, without some training on how to run killer meetings.

This book – Meetings Suck – finally teaches all employees and managers how to run awesome meetings that don’t suck…

I’d love an honest review from you on Amazon after you read it too.

Let’s stop the problem – by learning how to fix them once and for all.

Meetings Don’t Suck, We Suck At Running Meetings – See Here…

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We spend more time teaching our kids how to play sports like baseball than we do teaching our employees how to run meetings.

We spend time with our kids playing catch, showing them how to throw a ball, and how to bat.  We spend hours with our kids teaching them sports, and yet most companies have never invested 30-60 minutes teaching employees how to run meetings.

Meetings don’t suck, we suck at running meetings.  And it’s our fault.

If you want to run kick ass meetings, read this… FOCUSED MEETINGS

 

What Are Goal Setting and Review Meetings?

Do you have Goal Setting and Review meetings? If not, then you should. These are perhaps one of the most high impact meeting types there are, but only if you do them effectively. This blog is here to help with that!

Here you can find an outline of what a Goal Setting and Review meeting is and some tips on making them effective.

What is a Goal Setting and Review Meeting?

A Goal Setting and Review meeting is a one-on-one meeting that you have with the people that report directly to you. Then they have them with the people that report to them and so on down the line.

In this meeting, you set goals with your direct reports for the week coming up and ensure that their goals are aligned with the objectives of your team and the company as a whole.

“Team goals need to align with the aim of the company or organization. While these are going to mirror individual goals in many ways, team goals will be much larger and broader in scope. Some constraints need to be taken into account when setting team goals. These include the amount of time, the company budget, and the resources that the organization has available.” – Docket

What to Focus On

Goal Setting and Review meetings are meant to be a blend of direction, development, and support. They’re not an opportunity to task things or do project follow ups. It is only thirty to sixty minutes every week, so you need to keep focus.

The main purpose of this meeting is for you to coach your team members one-on-one, demonstrating to them how to be more effective in their roles. Keep the focus on that. It’s also a meeting where a lot of ‘situational leadership,’ an idea developed by Ket Blanchard and Paul Hersey, gets used.

“[Situational leadership] is when a leader adjusts their type of leadership to best suit a particular situation or task.” – Indeed

Why is it Important?

Done right, Goal Setting and Review meetings eliminate 80% of the emails between you and your direct reports during the week. How is this possible?

Instead of emailing each other with random questions and ideas, you add those to a list that will be discussed at the Goal Setting and Review meeting. This saves you both tons of time during the week. Needless to say, it also saves a lot of frustration caused by the miscommunication that occurs in email.

“Owners and managers are responsible for the goal-setting process as they are the leaders in the organization and tasked with maximizing the return of stakeholders vested in the company. The goal-setting process puts everyone on the same page and defines how to accomplish the goals.” – Bizfluent

If you’re not routinely meeting with your direct reports on a weekly basis for Goal Setting and Review meetings or something similar, then start today! You’re sure to see improvements very quickly.

If you have questions or would like more information, I’d be happy to help. Please send an email, and my team will get in touch with you!

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in August 2011 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.

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Meetings Suck: Turning One Of The Most Loathed Elements Of Business Into One Of The Most Valuable

We all know that meetings suck, right?

You hear it all the time. It’s the one thing that almost everyone in business can agree on.

Except it’s not actually true… 

Meetings don’t suck.

We just suck at running meetings.   

When done right, meetings not only work, they make people and companies better.

In Meetings Suck, world renowned business expert and growth guru Cameron Herold teaches you how to use focused, time effective meetings to help you and your company soar.

This book shows you immediately actionable, step-by-step systems that ensure that you and everyone in your organization improves your meetings, right away.

In the process, you’ll turn meetings that suck into meetings that work. 

In life, we always hear about people who’ve made huge decisions from their gut – without data.Today, I want you to make a decision, not only from your gut, but also from some data.  A decision that is only $12 per employee but will be priceless for your business.

Right now, your gut is telling you something is wrong with your company’s meetings.  You KNOW everyone complains about meetings.

People HATE going to them, they HATE running them, and they really have NO idea which meetings are truly necessary but they hold meetings simply because they think that is what they SHOULD do.

Even some of the smartest CEOs in the world complain about meetings – Elon Musk publicly told employees at Tesla & SpaceX to walk out of meetings if they weren’t being run properly.

I sent Elon a message saying that wasn’t going to fix anything – the key is to fix the root of the problem – NOT continue to ignore why meetings suck.

A Meeting is – Any phone call, video call or occasion where 2 or more people meet to discuss or work-through office topics.

Most employees on average spend 1-2 hours per day in meetings.

And likely, none of those employees – front-line staff or leaders – have had any training on how to attend meetings or participate in them, LET ALONE How to RUN THEM.

Consider this…

If the Average employee spends just 1 Hour per day in meetings – that’s 1/8th of their time.

If the Average employee earns $50,000 per year.

And they’re spending 1/8th of their time in meetings, that means you’re paying $6,250 dollars per year for just ONE employee to attend meetings.

The reality is, employees spend 1/8th of their time – and 1/8th of your company’s payroll – doing something they have literally NO idea how to do.

The Reality is…

95% of employees are booking & leading meetings – and they have NEVER been trained on how to run them.

95% of employees have had NO training on how to show up and participate in the meetings they attend daily.

And 95% of employees and companies have no idea what meetings are even necessary to hold.

Meetings CAN be hugely effective – IF you know how to run them

Meetings don’t SUCK, we just SUCK at running meetings. 

Investing $15 per employee – to help ensure the $50,000 a year you spend on them is an obvious and easy choice.

This could be the most impactful $15 you’ll ever spend and will save the company’s money, time and resources instantly.

Buying a copy of Meetings Suck for 100% of your employees and having them read it this month will have a huge impact on your company’s success.

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Free PR: How To Get Chased By The Press Without Hiring A PR Firm

Public relations has always been an essential part of doing business which is probably why you’re shelling out big money to an outside PR firm. But the truth is that you don’t need them. You already have all the necessary tools in-house to do as good a job as the so-called experts. 

Cameron Herold and Adrian Salamunovic have taught thousands of company execs how to exploit free media coverage and ditch these expensive, often ineffective outsiders. 

Cameron & Adrian have also built in-house PR teams, spent decades learning how to generate Free PR and how to leverage public relations to complement their sales and marketing strategy. 

In Free PR, you’ll learn how the media world operates while you gain invaluable insider knowledge and actionable advice on how to: 

  • Build your own in-house PR team
  • Provide effective interviews
  • Score great media coverage for free with just a few easy steps 

Landing public relations coverage for yourself and your company is a powerful tool to help elevate your personal brand. PR is easier to generate than marketing, PR is easier to leverage than marketing and PR is more cost effective than marketing. In other words, Public Relations is more critical than ever in growing your brand and your business. 

You’ve got more passion, commitment, a larger stake, and a deeper understanding of your business than any outside PR firm could ever have. So stop wasting money and take the reins yourself.  Learn the secrets to landing TONS of Free PR for your company.

What they’re saying:

“I think PR is the core for promoting any business. Public relations acquires customers! That’s what’s cool about this book.”

– Kevin O’Leary,  Shark on ABC’s Shark Tank

“The ultimate guidebook for those looking to get press, grow their brand, and get in front of the masses. Free PR is the roadmap you’ve been looking for.”

– Peter Shankman, Founder, Help a Reporter Out (HARO)

“Adrian and Cameron will show you the secrets of getting massive exposure for your business. This book is packed with actionable insights from two guys that actually know how to to do it.”

– Dan Martell,  Serial Entrepreneur & Investor (Intercom.io, Unbounce)

“I told Cameron to write the book on generating free PR. I’m excited to see that he’s finally sharing his secrets with the world. This is a must read for any entrepreneurial company and marketing team.”

– Verne Harnish, Founder of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO) and author of Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0)

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Vivid Vision: A Remarkable Tool For Aligning Your Business Around a Shared Vision of the Future

Many corporations have slick, flashy mission statements that ultimately do little to motivate employees and less to impress customers, investors, and partners. 

But there is a way to share your excitement for the future of your company in a clear, compelling, and powerful way and entrepreneur and business growth expert Cameron Herold can show you how. 

Vivid Vision is a revolutionary tool that will help owners, CEOs, and senior managers create inspirational, detailed, and actionable three-year mission statements for their companies. In this easy-to-follow guide, Herold walks organization leaders through the simple steps to creating their own Vivid Vision, from brainstorming to sharing the ideas to using the document to drive progress in the years to come. 

By focusing on mapping out how you see your company looking and feeling in every category of business, without getting bogged down by data and numbers or how it will happen, Vivid Vision creates a holistic road map to success that will get all of your teammates passionate about the big picture. 

Your company is your dream, one that you want to share with your staff, clients, and stakeholders. Vivid Vision is the tool you need to make that dream a reality.

miracle-morning

The Miracle Morning for
Entrepreneurs: Elevate Your SELF to
Elevate Your BUSINESS

READY FOR EXPLOSIVE GROWTH AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND ACCELERATED SUCCESS IN THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

A step-by-step guide to enjoying the roller-coaster ride of growth — while getting the most out of life as an entrepreneur. A growth-focused approach: The book is divided into three sections, which cover planning for fast growth, building a company for fast growth, and leading for fast growth. Each topic the author covers — from creating a vision for the company’s future to learning how to generate free PR for a developing company — is squarely focused on the end goal: doubling the size of the entrepreneur’s company in three years or less. A down-to-earth action plan: Herold’s experienced-based advice never gets bogged down in generalities or theory. Instead, he offers a wealth of practical tips, including: How to design meetings for maximum efficiency; How to hire top-quality talent; How to grow in particularly tough markets; How to put together a board of advisors — even for a smaller company; How even the busy entrepreneur can achieve a work/life balance.

READY FOR EXPLOSIVE GROWTH AS AN ENTREPRENEUR AND ACCELERATED SUCCESS IN THE REST OF YOUR LIFE?

Hal Elrod’sThe Miracle Morning has helped redefine the mornings and the lives of millions of readers since 2012. Since then, careers have been launched, goals have been met, and dreams have been realized, all through the power of the Miracle Morning’s six Life S.A.V.E.R.S.

THESE SIX DAILY PRACTICES WILL FUEL YOUR EFFORTS TO CREATE AND SUSTAIN POSITIVE CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE.

Now The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs brings you these principles in a whole new light—alongside the Entrepreneurial Elevation Principles and the Entrepreneur’s Elevation Skills. These are essential skills that you need to create a successful business and personal life. Cameron Herold— Bestselling Author and a widely-respected expert on entrepreneurial mindset—brings his wisdom and insight to you using Hal Elrod’s powerful Miracle Morning framework.

DEVELOP A VISION FOR YOUR BUSINESS, AND BECOME THE INFLUENTIAL AND INSPIRING LEADER YOU WERE ALWAYS MEANT TO BE.

The principles and skills you’ll find in this book will help you to channel your passion and achieve balance in a remarkable new way. – Learn why mornings matter more than you think – Learn how to master your own self-leadership and accelerate your personal development – Learn how to manage your energy—physical, mental, and emotional – Learn how to implement Hal Elrod’s invaluable Life S.A.V.E.R.S. in your daily routine – And much more… You’re already an entrepreneur. Now discover how to take your success to the next level by first taking yourself to the next level. The Miracle Morning for Entrepreneurs is your roadmap to masterfully building an empire with a powerful vision, utilizing your areas of personal genius, with the right team at your side.

Start giving your business and your life the very best opportunities for success, right now.

A step-by-step guide to enjoying the roller-coaster ride of growth — while getting the most out of life as an entrepreneur. A growth-focused approach: The book is divided into three sections, which cover planning for fast growth, building a company for fast growth, and leading for fast growth. Each topic the author covers — from creating a vision for the company’s future to learning how to generate free PR for a developing company — is squarely focused on the end goal: doubling the size of the entrepreneur’s company in three years or less. A down-to-earth action plan: Herold’s experienced-based advice never gets bogged down in generalities or theory. Instead, he offers a wealth of practical tips, including: How to design meetings for maximum efficiency; How to hire top-quality talent; How to grow in particularly tough markets; How to put together a board of advisors — even for a smaller company; How even the busy entrepreneur can achieve a work/life balance.