Comments on: Q: “Why does every meeting start with 5 minutes of USELESS chit-chat?” http://jasonseiden.com/q-why-does-every-meeting-start-with-5-minutes-of-useless-chit-chat/ My Blog is Profersonal™. Mon, 21 May 2012 18:04:01 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.4 By: Josh Margolis http://jasonseiden.com/q-why-does-every-meeting-start-with-5-minutes-of-useless-chit-chat/comment-page-1/#comment-295 Josh Margolis Sat, 23 Aug 2008 18:16:40 +0000 http://jasonseiden.com/q-why-does-every-meeting-start-with-5-minutes-of-useless-chit-chat/#comment-295 We start each weekly staff meeting--after the obligatory round of put-downs and other chit-chat, with each person rating his personal and business life on a 1-10 scale. Is any sick at home? Did the house burn down? Any projects in danger of imploding this week? We start each weekly staff meeting–after the obligatory round of put-downs and other chit-chat, with each person rating his personal and business life on a 1-10 scale. Is any sick at home? Did the house burn down? Any projects in danger of imploding this week?

]]> By: Matt Reynolds http://jasonseiden.com/q-why-does-every-meeting-start-with-5-minutes-of-useless-chit-chat/comment-page-1/#comment-277 Matt Reynolds Thu, 21 Aug 2008 16:49:34 +0000 http://jasonseiden.com/q-why-does-every-meeting-start-with-5-minutes-of-useless-chit-chat/#comment-277 How's your summer been Jason? What's the best thing that happened on your summer vacation?...Hey, just engaging in a little chit-chat. Your artice is spot on. The meetings that I dive head first into the business at hand are always a different feel and certainly more tense than those which start with a little chit-chat. I'm a firm believer that chit-chat not only helps you read those in the room, but can be a tension release and a leveling of the playing ground. That's important so as to ensure the goals of the meeting are actually acomplished. I also find that unless the presiding authority of the meeting engages in such behavior, the likelihood of others doing it is much less. Therefore, whether I'm leading the meeting or a participant, I make sure there's a little chit-chat going on before we get down to business...regardless of those that may think it's a waste of time. How’s your summer been Jason? What’s the best thing that happened on your summer vacation?…Hey, just engaging in a little chit-chat.

Your artice is spot on. The meetings that I dive head first into the business at hand are always a different feel and certainly more tense than those which start with a little chit-chat. I’m a firm believer that chit-chat not only helps you read those in the room, but can be a tension release and a leveling of the playing ground. That’s important so as to ensure the goals of the meeting are actually acomplished.
I also find that unless the presiding authority of the meeting engages in such behavior, the likelihood of others doing it is much less. Therefore, whether I’m leading the meeting or a participant, I make sure there’s a little chit-chat going on before we get down to business…regardless of those that may think it’s a waste of time.

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