How to Run a Meeting Without Losing Your Soul
You’ve made it to Chapter Two — which means you’ve survived your first few days as the “volunteer-told” Project Manager. Congratulations! Your reward? Meetings. Lots of them.
Because nothing says project management quite like a calendar so full it looks like a game of Tetris.
But here’s the truth: if you don’t learn how to run a meeting, the meeting will run you. And spoiler alert: meetings are like rabbits — they multiply.
So let’s talk survival.
1. Always Have an Agenda (Even a Fake One)
No agenda = chaos. People show up with snacks, stories, and that one guy who thinks it’s open-mic night for his ideas.
Tip: Write down 3 bullet points, call it an agenda, and suddenly you look like you know what you’re doing. Bonus: it keeps you from talking about Karen’s cat for 30 minutes.
2. Start on Time, End Early
You’ll never look more like a legend than when you say, “That’s all we needed — ending 10 minutes early!”
People will cheer. They will tell their grandchildren. Your name will be remembered.
3. Master the Art of the Gentle Redirect
Someone will go off-topic. They always do.
Example:
“This reminds me of the time my neighbor built a treehouse…”
Your response:
“That’s fascinating, Jim — let’s park that idea and circle back to our actual deadline before 2032.”
4. Embrace the Parking Lot
No, not the one outside.
The “meeting parking lot” is where you put every off-topic but “maybe useful later” idea.
It makes people feel heard without derailing the meeting. Plus, you’ll look super organized with your little “parking lot list.”
5. Summarize Like a Boss
At the end of every meeting, recap:
- Who’s doing what
- By when
- And whether they actually agreed or just nodded while scrolling their phone
If you don’t do this, next week everyone will swear they “never heard about it.”
Closing Thought
Running meetings isn’t about being the loudest in the room — it’s about keeping things moving without losing your sanity.
Remember:
- Agenda = control
- Time = respect
- Summary = survival
This was Chapter Two of The Bible of the Volunteer-Told Project Manager.
Stay tuned for Chapter Three: “Managing Stakeholders: Herding Cats, but With More Emails.”