The document provides golden rules for effective meeting planning and management. It recommends considering the perspective of participants, preparing an agenda and materials in advance, respecting people's time by starting and ending on time and sticking to the agenda, keeping discussions focused and relevant, evaluating if meetings are truly necessary, and wrapping up with clear next steps and responsibilities. Following these simple rules can significantly increase meeting productivity through preparation and discipline.

1. Golden Rules of Meeting Planning

2. Plan as if you are attending Be considerate of others Ask yourself if this would keep you interested if you were attending Would this content be of value to you. All other Golden Rules flow from this Principal!

3. Prepare and Prepare your Participants Create an Agenda If there is nothing to put on the Agenda… should you be having a meeting? Ask Participants to go over the Agenda ahead of time and any necessary background materials so they can arrive prepared Get feedback from participants to ensure all topics of interest will be covered. No one should arrive at a meeting not knowing why they are there--and what is supposed to be accomplished

4. Don’t Waste Participants Time! Start and end your meeting on time. Be considerate of others time and don’t be late. Build a schedule with only necessary information and stick to it. Hold meetings at a time that is convenient to others, not just yourself End the meeting at the stated time. Others may have appointments scheduled for after the meeting. Be considerate of other’s time.

5. Bring it back on topic Stick to the Agenda Storytelling and sidelines build Teams and help coach, but should be kept short and be relevant to topic Be a strong Leader and bring it back to topic to end on time.

6. Know if your meeting is necessary Just because you schedule weekly meetings, doesn’t mean you need them. Evaluate your frequency vs productivity of your meetings Find the balance between good communication and productivity for your meetings

7. Know your “Call to Action” Wrap up with a clear statement Ensure participants know what the next step is Ensure participants know what was accomplished and what their follow-up responsibilities areand the steps to accomplish those tasks.

8. These simple rules can go a long way in making meetings more productive. Implementing them is not always easy, as they require preparation and discipline, but doing so can make a huge difference to the productivity of your organization.