Professors – Make Sure You Have Productive Appointments
One of the best aspects of appointments is that you can prepare for them. This article gives you some ideas to help you do the prep work ahead of time that will allow your appointments to be effective, efficient, and productive for you and and those with whom you are meeting. Consider sharing these ideas with your colleagues, students, and others on your campus.
- Call and/or email prior to the appointment to confirm. It takes a couple of minutes and may save you a couple of hours or more if the other person had forgotten or needs to reschedule.
- Arrive and/or be ready on time (and this means planning to arrive early if you are traveling to an appointment). Some people are raised with the maxim, “If you arrive at the designated time, you’re late.” It doesn’t mean you have to expect the other person to be ready for you, but YOU are there, ready.
- Expect that you will have to wait, so have something to work on or to read. It’s one reason to always have your planner with you–you can keep information in there to work on &/or read. Surely, you always have articles, journals, or papers to read, as well, so just be prepared.
- Determine your questions, issues, or goals for the appointment. Write them down. This helps you focus and helps the person(s) you’re meeting with to focus as well. Everyone’s time is valuable.
- Find out how much time the other person has. If this hasn’t been established ahead of time, find out right at the beginning of the appointment. This helps everyone to get focused on getting right down to the “business” of the appointment.
- Determine how much time you have. Make that clear to the other person, too. Consider your next appointment, class, meeting, or other commitment when making your determination.
- Agree on an agenda ahead of time (or at the beginning of the appointment). People think of agendas for meetings, but an appointment with one other person is also a meeting. Have an agenda. Nothing formal, just a brief listing of what needs to be addressed during the time you’re together.
- Meet where there are no (or limited) distractions (e.g., phone, email, drop-ins). If the location of your appointment seems distraction-prone, then set up the environment for productivity (close door, ask that phones be turned off).
- Have the tools you need to be productive (your planner, some place to take notes, a timer so you don’t have to keep checking your watch). Be prepared…that’s what this whole article is about.
Well-planned and productively-used appointments make tremendous sense for you and for your colleagues. Put one or more of these ideas into practice this week…maybe even within the next hour. Share these ideas with your colleagues, too. You (and they) will appreciate it! It’s a gift that keeps on giving!
Keep moving forward on your goals for more peaceful productivity. Join others (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (and see what is available for download at no cost at the following websites):
**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)
**Keys to Keeping Chaos at Bay (http://www.KeepingChaosatBay.com)
(c) 2008 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!
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