Recently I listened to a very good TEDx talk given by Jason Fried, titled Why Work Doesn't Happen at Work.  Much of what he espouses, I agree with, such as a traditional office is not our most productive work environment.  His issue with the office is involuntary interruptions and meetings.  Jason says that meetings are "toxic, terrible, poisonous things..."

Admittedly, Jason and I are in the same industry and, as such, mass collaboration outside of traditional office structures benefits us greatly.  However, I am not as fanatical about eliminating in-person meetings.  In fact, the very conference he spoke at was, by its very nature, a meeting. 

Workshifting is not about the elimination of meetings.  It is about enhancing productivity by focusing on a results based work environment that is location agnostic.  However, face-to-face meetings are critical for developing relationships and building culture.

When I need to be head-down in a project, I go anywhere that will provide me solitude.  However, that solitude is not where I do my best work.  My best work is done in and around the company of others.  Be it face-to-face, or online. The key is creating a workshifting environment that provides the flexibility for both. 

Don't cancel all your meetings, but cancel those that don't add value.  A great to test is to simply take the meeting off of the calendar and see if anyone notices.  Same goes for reports or updates you are sending.  Stop sending, see if anyone comes knocking on your door.  Lastly,  just ask people what value they are getting from a meeting.

Online or offline, we meet to collaborate, solve problems and to connect.  If your meetings are not some combination of those attributes, it may be time to take Jason's advice, and kill them.

What works best for you?

Photo Credit: jough