As I was preparing to interview Judy Rees, I came upon a beautiful (and useful!) quote about meetings:
“What do I want to happen at this meeting, and as a result of this meeting?”
— Judy Rees
It sounds like common sense, but the truth is that common sense is often in short supply, and we hold meetings just “because” – as a default response when we lack ideas on what to do, or, worse: because of habit.
Formalizing our intentions is a first step to take so that the meeting is not a waste of time. It’s a light version of goal-setting.
But I think we can go further with this “rule.” We can benefit from it beyond meetings. Judy’s rule can be applied to every action we take on a daily basis.
Consider it a way of establishing mindfulness. Doing so will force us to refine our focus, and we will stop running on auto-pilot; we will instead proceed to work through our tasks with clarity. And doing so can only improve the quality of our actions.
And often, setting a clear goal is enough to inspire a solution. Not always…
But often enough to justify developing this habit: before any action, think of the intention, think of what would be the ideal result.
Ask yourself: “How do I want to undertake this action, and what do I expect as a result of this action?”
Painting: “Diana and her Nymphs” by Domenichino