A lot of time is wasted in meetings. 

Agendas get forgotten, topics go astray, and people get distracted. While some circumstances call for a more elaborate presentation or workshop discussion, it’s rare that a meeting on a single topic should take more than 5 or 10 minutes of discussion.

I was reading on a plane recently how Sir Richard Branson likes to take the short meeting strategy one step further by conducting his meetings standing up. In London, Branson might meet you at the canals of Little Venice or around the lake in Kidlington and invite you for a walk. He likes to get people away from their office gadgets and routine – this often disarms the candidate and he gets to know what they’re thinking.

Who says meetings can only be conducted one way? Is sitting around a table in suits reading from formal presentation material the way to truly engage with clients? When we are selling someone’s home they might be telling us what they think we want to hear or need to know. For your next vendor meeting why not suggest meeting 1km from the local coffee shop and take a stroll? It’s definitely a healthy option, it’ll save you time, and the feedback might truly amaze you.