A Simple Discipline to Instantly Improve Your Meetings

One simple discipline we teach our clients is the power of rating their weekly Level 10 Meeting (click to download the Level 10 agenda). The power of doing this consistently is getting instant feedback on the effectiveness of your meetings.

Meetings are a necessary evil in business. They are the moment of truth for leadership teams. They’re an opportunity for getting on the same page, solving problems, creating ideas, and reporting on what’s important. It’s vital that your meetings are great. That’s non-negotiable.

Knowing this, the best way to find out if your team thinks your meetings are great is to ask, and the fastest way to ask and get an answer is a rating. It works like this: At the end of your meeting, ask, “Okay, let’s rate the meeting. On a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the best, how did we do?” Once everyone has answered, you’ll have your feedback. My advice is that an 8 or better is the standard. Anything less isn’t going to get you to great.

Sometimes, if the rating is less than an 8, you just leave it right there and end the meeting. You’ll have your insight, and the awareness alone will move you toward increasing the number. However, I’d also recommend occasionally asking anyone who rated it lower than an 8, “What would have made it a 10 for you?” You will then get some great feedback on how to improve and take it to a level 10!

I know it might be a little scary to find out the truth, but I urge you to try it in your next meeting.