Yesterday was a marathon meeting day! I try to schedule the majority of my meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I call them my meeting days. Mondays and Fridays are my focus days. I went eight straight hours yesterday without coming up for a breath.

I love a meeting that has an agenda. That gives a meeting positive energy. A meeting with no agenda? Not so much!

Ever had one of those meetings where you don’t have the guts to come right out and ask: why are we meeting? So you play detective and you can’t figure it out for the life of you. An hour later you’re still clueless. One of the simple lessons I’ve learned is to try to ascertain the objective of the meeting before the meeting. I came up with that little rule of thumb after a one-hour meeting that culminated in a multi-level marketing opportunity! Not that there is anything wrong with multi-level marketing! I just want to know upfront.

One of the things I wrestle with is this. I tend to be a little more task-oriented than relationship-oriented in the meeting context. If we’re meeting to hang out let’s play corn hole or go to a game. You know what I’m saying? But during the work day I tend to be in work mode. Not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

Here are a few meeting tips for pastors with busy schedules:

1) Pray for the person before meeting with them–it can turn an ordinary meeting into a divine appointment.
2) Let them know how much time you have upfront–it can avoid misunderstanding and keep you from feeling like you are cutting them off.
3) Get to the point but don’t get there too early or two late. If you get there too early it becomes impersonal. If you get there too late you’ll have five minutes left to talk about the real issue.
4) Ask lots of Questions–don’t try to be an Oracle. Be a sounding board.
5) Remember that your time is the one of the greatest gifts you can give to people. Be wise. Be generous.