WEBVTT - First why, then when 

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to first ask why, then ask when.

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<v Speaker 1>Getting clear on the purpose of any gathering can help

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<v Speaker 1>make sure that it's a wise use of time. When

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<v Speaker 1>I talk with people about their schedules, one of the

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<v Speaker 1>biggest complaints is that there are way too many meetings now.

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<v Speaker 1>Meetings exist for a reason. Of course, we need to

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<v Speaker 1>collaborate with other people to achieve goals that we couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>have on our own, and the right people to achieve

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<v Speaker 1>those goals are unlikely to randomly show up all together

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<v Speaker 1>at a time when we are best prepared to work

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<v Speaker 1>with them. Scheduling a meeting with certain people for a

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<v Speaker 1>certain time means we can get work done. But oh,

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<v Speaker 1>is there a big but coming. Many organizations rely way

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<v Speaker 1>too heavily on meetings. Every project needs its own weekly

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<v Speaker 1>meetings to make sure people are still doing their jobs

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<v Speaker 1>because there are so many other weekly meetings that a

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<v Speaker 1>meeting is the only way to enforce accountability and deadlines.

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<v Speaker 1>Having half a schedule full of meetings is not at

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<v Speaker 1>all a typical and sometimes between email and meetings days

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<v Speaker 1>get so crowded that any other work has to be

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<v Speaker 1>done at night or on weekends, which can lead to burnout.

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<v Speaker 1>There are many factors at work, but one little check

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<v Speaker 1>can help with lowering the volume. Whenever people start talking

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<v Speaker 1>about meeting, the first question should be why before you

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<v Speaker 1>get to win. That is, when someone says we need

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<v Speaker 1>to meet about the Smith project, the first question should

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<v Speaker 1>not be when is every one free to meet? It

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<v Speaker 1>should be what do we need to decide about the

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<v Speaker 1>Smith Project? In other words, what is the purpose of

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<v Speaker 1>this meeting? Now? There is no need to make this antagonistic.

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<v Speaker 1>It is just a simple question like this, I'd love

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<v Speaker 1>to talk with you about the Smith Project? What are

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<v Speaker 1>we trying to decide? Or I'd love to meet about that.

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<v Speaker 1>Can you tell me a little bit more about what

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<v Speaker 1>you'd like me to help with so I know best

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<v Speaker 1>how to prepare. These are all absolutely legitimate questions. You

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<v Speaker 1>don't want to waste the other person's time either. Asking

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<v Speaker 1>these questions also leads to some good follow up information.

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<v Speaker 1>Maybe you find out that the thing the person needs

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<v Speaker 1>to decide about the Smith project is not actually in

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<v Speaker 1>your purview. You have no power to approve it, and

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<v Speaker 1>so you are not the right person to meet with.

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<v Speaker 1>Good to know before it's on the schedule. Or maybe

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<v Speaker 1>you see that the thing you are supposed to help

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<v Speaker 1>with is in nation you have readily available. You can

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<v Speaker 1>just send it over. No need to meet now. Of course,

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<v Speaker 1>you may see that you really do need to decide

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<v Speaker 1>something together. If so, that is awesome. Now you have

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<v Speaker 1>the skeleton of an agenda for your meeting. You know

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<v Speaker 1>what the outcome needs to be, and so you can

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<v Speaker 1>work backwards to figure out how you will get there

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<v Speaker 1>and how long those steps will take. Not only do

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<v Speaker 1>you know that you do need to meet, you will

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<v Speaker 1>now have a much better meeting. This is an excellent

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<v Speaker 1>and time saving outcome too. I believe this question can

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<v Speaker 1>help even with meeting requests from your supervisor. Yes, asking

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<v Speaker 1>why you are not trying to get out of something.

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<v Speaker 1>You are asking the why so you can do the

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<v Speaker 1>work necessary to have the best meeting possible. This isn't

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<v Speaker 1>rude at all. Indeed, I'd argue that it would be

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<v Speaker 1>rude not to assist your busy supervisor by trying to

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<v Speaker 1>figure this all out. When you have a good why,

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<v Speaker 1>you can then enthusiastically find a time on the schedule

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<v Speaker 1>that works, and you know you won't spend the first

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<v Speaker 1>ten minutes of the meeting figuring out why you're meeting

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<v Speaker 1>and sometimes discovering, to everyone's annoyance that you really didn't

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<v Speaker 1>need to meet at all. Better to ask that question

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<v Speaker 1>up front and avoid those bad feelings that didn't have

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<v Speaker 1>to happen in the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks for listening,

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<v Speaker 1>and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod

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<v Speaker 1>that's b E the number four, then Breakfast p o D.

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<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>podcast at iHeartMedia dot com. That Before Breakfast is spelled

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<v Speaker 1>out with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look

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<v Speaker 1>forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio,

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<v Speaker 1>visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

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