Friday Five

1. What's your view of meetings? Choose one or more, or make up your own:

a) When they're good, they're good. I love the feeling of people working well together on a common goal.

b) I don't seek them out, but I recognize them as a necessary part of life.

c) The only good meeting is a canceled meeting.

And my answer is c). Meetings are some of the biggest time wasters that I have ever run across. Unfortunately, b) is also part of my answer because you really cannot get anything done without them. I just really, really hate them.

2. Do you like some amount of community building or conversation, or are you all business?

I think that it is hard to just jump into the business of a meeting without the community building conversations. It might work in a purely business atmosphere but not in the church.

3. How do you feel about leading meetings? Share any particular strengths or weaknesses you have in this area.

I really don’t have a preference – I like to lead and to follow. It just depends on what the meeting is over. I might have a particular expertise in underwater basket weaving but know nothing at all about putting together widgets. So it would make sense for me to lead a meeting on underwater basket weaving and be a follower at the widget meeting.

4. Have you ever participated in a virtual meeting? (conference call, IM, chat, etc.) Yes.

What do you think of this format?

I love these kinds of formats. It is perfect for busy people. It has a tendency to be shorter and not a waste of time. You get in, get the job done, assignments made and that’s that. Love it, love it, love it. Plus, you can be wearing your pajamas.

5. Share a story of a memorable meeting you attended.

It was the admin council from hell. The pastor of the church where I was the office manager got mad, I quit, and the meeting fell apart. And it was all over one man’s insistence that the church be run like a business. No grace.


Bonus question: pet peeves about meetings?
People who start rambling on and on about something that is totally irrelevant to the subject at hand. And especially, when it something that we hear at every single time we come together. People who hold their own little private meeting during the public meeting – whispering and carrying on separate conversations. Meetings that don’t start on time. Meetings that never end. Meetings where one subject is use to disguise the true subject, usually where they are mad at the pastor.

Things I like:
Meetings that accomplish what they set out to achieve. Meetings where everyone leaves happy. Meetings that further God’s will. Meeting’s that are short and can be held in conjunction with something else – Two birds with one stone.