Wonder why your task list isn’t getting any shorter? Or why you can’t seem to make any headway on those work projects? A quick look at your calendar will tell you why.

A schedule packed with too many meetings may be the problem. Consider these staffing solutions tips…

To avoid the great meeting time suck, we’ve put together some staffing solutions to help relieve your overbooked meeting calendar. Start by doing a little meeting soul-searching and ask yourself:

• Do you really need to have a meeting?
• Are you scheduling it at the right time?
• What are you trying to accomplish?

Sure, there may be times when face-to-face meetings are important, but if you want to protect your productivity, the fewer the better.

Just because a meeting is on the schedule doesn’t mean it’s necessary. If the reason for the meeting isn’t clear, ask the organizer. Many times a quick phone conversation or email can be more productive than time spent in a conference room.

If a meeting is really necessary, schedule it on a day and at a time that are more likely to get results. The Monday morning staff meeting may be the biggest reason for those Monday blues. It might seem like a great idea to start the week by going over projects and deadlines, but there’s a better day for meetings and it’s not Monday.

Tuesday is the best day of the week to have a meeting. Giving team members Monday to tie up any loose ends from the week before will help them get a handle on what needs to be completed in the current week.

If you want meetings to be more productive, you’ve got to schedule them at the right time. The best time of day for a meeting is at 3 P.M. Moving a meeting to later in the day gives people more time to prepare. If a meeting is needed to make a decision, schedule it after lunch. The best decisions are made on a full stomach.

The worst meetings are the ones that last too long and go nowhere. Studies show that people can only stay engaged for approximately 18 minutes. When holding a meeting, make it short–less than 30 minutes.

If you want everyone alert and participating, you have to keep things moving. To keep your meeting on track and on time, send out an agenda ahead so everyone knows what’s expected and use it to stick to the meeting’s goal.

Have a meeting while walking and standing to increase productivity. It’ll help to decrease stress and the negative effects of sitting all day.

Most meetings are scheduled for the sole purpose of making a decision. Creating a standard  decision-making process can be helpful to guide staff members to a quick resolution. Many decisions can be reached much more effectively when teams are empowered to make them on their own.
Meetings can be–and usually are–a huge waste of time, but a few wise staffing solutions can help you set the stage for faster, better, more effective company meetings.