Making the most out of meetings is an essential part of effective workplace communication.
Being a solid meeting contributor can lead to increased productivity and job satisfaction.
So, if you find meetings boring and a waste of time, read this article to find out the difference you can make when you bring an attitude of participation to meetings, and how it can benefit your team and your career.

"Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.
" Auguste Rodin, the great French sculptor, said that, and it applies, not only in everyday life, but in business meetings as well.

Employee Training Should Include Effective Ways to Communicate in Meetings Let's face it...
meetings happen.
So, instead of bringing doughnuts to your next one, how about bringing an attitude of participation?

Fred finds meetings to be generally boring.
He enjoys going for the free food, but his supervisor has asked him to contribute to what is being discussed in the meetings.
"Fred," says his supervisor, "I know you don't like taking time away from work to go to meetings, but I bet you would feel differently if you took on an attitude of participation.
You are always coming to me with good ideas during the day, and I wish that you would bring them up in our meetings.
They could make a positive difference in the way we do things.
"

How to Make Meeting Time Worth Your While After all, if it's necessary to spend your precious time in a meeting, then make it worth your while.
How? Plan your strategy in advance.

• Think about ideas you can contribute that will add value to the meeting.
  
• Look at the meeting as an opportunity to get an important message across that will benefit the team or the company.
  
• Bring up an important message of a more general nature, like a community concern or project, etc.
  

Whatever it is, your message becomes your mission and your contribution.
Find a way to connect your message with what's going on in the meeting by saying something like...

"Susan's comment made me think about...
" "Since we are talking about...
, I have an idea that...
"

Positive Results Lead to Increased Productivity and Employee Satisfaction

Fred decides to take his supervisor's advice and bring more than chips and soda to the next meeting.
He has thought of a couple of ways that his work team could make improvements on their project.
At an appropriate time during the meeting, Fred takes the opportunity to give his viewpoint, and gets positive feedback from his team.
In fact, the team decides to implement his ideas, and they end up saving significant time and money.
In addition, his supervisor is delighted and praises him for being so impactful.

Workplace leaders need to motivate employees to be regular meeting contributors.
This will help teams improve workplace communication, productivity, and employee morale.