Corporate meetings

Conceptually, I always believed meetings were meant to serve a clear purpose:

That’s the theory.

In reality, meetings have evolved into something else altogether.

What many meetings have now become:

My problem is everyone’s problem — so let’s call a meeting
Emails and documents won’t be read — either because they aren’t understood or simply because no one bothered
Turn everything into a group activity so no single person is accountable
Collective thinking, collective ownership — effectively, no ownership
Anyone who asks a question or offers a suggestion risks becoming the owner of the problem
The most prepared person often gets grilled — through planned agendas or surprise viva-style interrogations

And then there’s the timing.

Meetings can start anytime from the beginning of office hours and stretch well beyond them.

A free calendar is assumed to mean you are absolutely free — as if meetings are the only form of work that exists.

Many thrive in this ecosystem.

And as always, the 80:20 rule applies — a large group creates most of the noise, while the rest carry the actual work.

I try to plan escapes — blocking my calendar with team slots to close real work (even if we don’t always connect).

But more often than not, these plans get overridden.

I’ve learned to distinguish between:

Sensible, purposeful meetings — which don’t bother me much
The other kind — driven by certain people and patterns I’m still learning to handle

Until I figure that out, I use small survival tactics:

Not ideal — but sometimes necessary to protect productivity and sanity.

Logical lekhika