Harden Elkington
A common phrase these days, meeting overload refers to the fact that we are having too many meetings and not enough time to do our actual work.
It usually happens with individuals who perform multiple roles, such as managing a team and overseeing its project management system (thankfully, there is Slack!).
For most knowledge workers, meeting overload becomes an inevitable part of their day and can have negative consequences on their productivity, creativity, and overall well-being.
The psychology behind meeting overload is poorly understood.
In a study recently published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, we sought to explore how different personality traits might affect how individuals cope with this work stressor.
We did so by exploring the association between meeting overload and three personality traits that have been implicated in other forms of work stress: conscientiousness, job burnout, and self-control.
Conscientiousness is a trait characterized by the tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully, be achievement oriented, methodical, responsible, deliberate, and organized.
Individuals high in conscientiousness are often better able to cope with meeting overload by planning their time wisely, setting priorities, and using effective time management strategies.
Job burnout is a state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion that can result from prolonged stress at work.
Individuals who are high in job burnout are more likely to feel fatigued and drained from their work, which can make it more difficult to cope with meeting overload.
Self-control is the ability to control impulses and regulate emotions in the face of temptation.
Individuals who show a lack of self-control are less likely to be able to cope with this stressor because they may struggle with organization or prioritizing tasks.
Meeting FOMO
FOMO, or Fear of Missing Out, is one of the most prevalent reasons we attend too many meetings.
As for meeting attendees, we worry about being judged or forgotten by our coworkers if we don’t accept every invitation.
We come to believe that being present equals productivity, and these preconceptions are strengthened when bosses measure commitment via facetime or fail to acknowledge the value of digital-only workers.
Managers are responsible for avoiding these damaging behaviors, but employees may use strategies like exhibiting their worth and engagement outside of meetings to overcome their concerns.
If you make a point of offering your thoughts before the meeting or following up with the host afterward, you’ll be more willing to decline an invitation.
Surprisingly, FOMO doesn’t just affect attendees, it can also damage organizers, resulting in overinflated invites.
If you’re organizing a meeting, keep in mind that omitting someone isn’t an insult if the gathering isn’t relevant to them and that acknowledging when a meeting would be a waste of their time is actually more courteous than leaving them in the dark.
How to Overcome Meeting FOMO
If you feel like you constantly have more demands than can be met, it’s important to take control of your schedule. Look for ways that technology can help limit the number of meetings that are necessary.
Keep an up-to-date calendar and designate time slots for specific types of meetings (e.g. status update, brainstorming, decision-making).
Try to book recurring meetings for those items that don’t need to be revisited often and avoid setting them back-to-back whenever possible.
If you’re an attendee, try to arrive prepared with an agenda and goals for the meeting. If you’re an organizer, provide an agenda and a clear goal for the meeting with enough notice so people can properly prepare.
If you find yourself regularly denying invites or agreeing to attend too many meetings despite your best efforts, it’s time for a change of scenery.
Try something new and see if spending more time alone allows you to accomplish more work in a shorter amount of time.
Selfish Urgency
We all succumb to the Egocentric Bias from time to time — that is, the propensity to concentrate more on our own needs, desires, and perspectives.
When it comes to meetings, this tendency generates what we refer to as “selfish urgency.”
That is, instead of considering their teams’ demands or schedules before rescheduling meetings at their convenience, people consider their own needs first and reschedule meetings based on what works for them.
Although selfish urgency is more often associated with younger employees who are more likely to see themselves as “above” the requirements of their job, it can affect us all when we let our emotions get the best of us.
This is especially true in the context of meetings because they’re often tied to rewards (e.g., promotions) or punishments (e.g., getting stuck with all the “busy work”).
How to Overcome selfish urgency
To overcome selfish urgency, we need to shift our focus back on to others and consider what’s best for the team.
If you lead a meeting, ask yourself how frequently you need to meet with your team, what types of meetings they need, and when you should schedule them.
Then, consider how much time each person needs in order to prepare for the meeting (not just read documentation) and whether anyone outside of the group will be impacted by it.
Think about how much time every single attendee needs in order to prepare and how often they can feasibly reschedule.
If the answers to these questions still lead you to reschedule a meeting that’s been on your calendar for months, it might be time to sit down with the entire team and discuss alternative solutions.
Meetings as Commitment Devices
Meetings are sometimes used as commitment tools, that is, as a method to assist ensure that people keep their word.
According to behavioral science, an external deadline (such as a meeting with your boss) may be an effective motivator, however, the meeting itself is frequently superfluous, with individuals just reporting on how they did or failed to reach their goal.
In these cases, the meeting becomes a way to hold people accountable instead of a tool for information-gathering or decision-making.
In fact, a study by team collaboration software company, Asana, found that nearly 60% of all respondents felt meetings were “ineffective” and “a waste of time.”
How to Overcome the Commitment Device Meeting
If you find yourself in a meeting that’s being used as a commitment device, there are a few things you can do to make it more effective:
- Come prepared with an update on your progress and what you plan to do next.
- Make sure everyone else is also prepared to give an update.
- Hold people accountable for their commitments outside of the meeting, such as through email or a chat client.
- If possible, come to an agreement on what should happen in the event that someone can’t meet their commitment.
- Remove the meeting from your calendar if it’s no longer serving its purpose.
Although it can be difficult to overcome the commitment device meeting, it’s important to do so if the meeting is no longer effective.
By coming prepared, holding people accountable, and removing the meeting from your calendar when it’s no longer necessary, you can help make the meeting more productive for everyone involved.
The Mere Urgency Effect it
You can also fall prey to what we refer to as “mere urgency.”
That is, the tendency to overestimate how much an item — such as a meeting — needs to be addressed or solved right now because you feel like it.
In studies on speed dating and negotiation, for example, researchers found that people who exhibited mere urgency were less likely to make accurate decisions or come up with creative ideas, even if they were the ones who put the object under question onto their agenda.
Mere urgency often stems from confirmation bias (in which we selectively notice information that confirms our beliefs) and the illusion of control (in which we believe we can actively influence an outcome).
For example, if you think your team needs to meet more often, you may be more likely to see evidence that supports your belief and less likely to take into account the amount of time each person needs in order to prepare.
To overcome mere urgency, it’s important to step back and assess the situation objectively. Ask yourself whether the meeting is really necessary and whether everyone is on the same page about what needs to be addressed.
- Related post: The Science of Motivating People
- Related post: Psychological Wellness Profile of People with a Healthy Personality Type
Meeting Amnesia
To avoid refinding in the same bad meeting over and over, schedule a short five-minute team debrief after every major internal and external contact.
In a completely virtual workplace, these sessions are especially essential since fewer informal connections allow meeting leaders not to notice when workers (particularly if they’re junior) walk out of a call perplexed.
The primary concern is that individual employees may feel forced to attend meetings in which they have no interest, either because the meeting seems unimportant or because it will be led by managers who are perceived as difficult.
This could discourage workers from speaking up during these less-relevant meetings, even if they perceive large problems within their own teams.
Employees may also be less likely to voice suggestions or ideas during the meeting itself.
Our study of more than 3,000 employees found that employees who feel forced into attending unproductive meetings are more likely to resist attendance and try to avoid them altogether.
They felt their time was not being respected by others, which led them to resent their company, team members, and work in general.
Conclusion
Although it’s often difficult, it’s important to overcome the commitment device meeting.
By coming prepared, holding people accountable, and removing the meeting from your calendar when it’s no longer necessary, you can help make the meeting more productive for everyone involved.
You can also fall prey to what we refer to as “mere urgency.” That is, the tendency to overestimate how much an item — such as a meeting — needs to be addressed or solved right now because you feel like it.
To overcome mere urgency, it’s important to step back and assess the situation objectively.
Ask yourself whether the meeting is really necessary and whether everyone is on the same page about what needs to be addressed.
