A boring business meeting limits engagement. Employees may also retain less information and share fewer ideas. Here are a few simple ways to make your business meetings more fun and engaging.
Open Your Meeting with an Ice Breaker
Ice breakers help everyone relax and build a stronger connection between the presenter and the audience. Most ice breakers are questions or actions. Some presenters ask a question related to the topic of the meeting. For example, you may ask for input to get a feel for where the audience stands on a topic that you plan to discuss.
Examples of actions that are used as ice breakers include simple exercises, such as getting everyone on their feet for a short aerobic exercise or an impromptu dance party.
Allow Staff to Discuss Their Favorite Topics
Setting aside time for staff to discuss other interests, such as hobbies, allows team members to get to know each other better. They can develop stronger connections, which leads to greater collaboration.
Allow Staff to Recognize Their Co-Workers
A portion of each team meeting should include time for shoutouts. Allow staff to recognize their co-workers with short thank-you messages.
For example, each member can shout out a person on the team that recently helped them in some way, such as assisting with a project or providing support. Shoutouts help team members feel more appreciated and tend to uplift everyone’s spirits.
Invite Multiple Co-Presenters for Each Meeting
Discussing interests and sending shoutouts may not work well in very formal business settings. An alternative option for keeping people engaged is to allow others to take over portions of the meeting.
Assign one or more co-presenters for each meeting. For example, during a sales meeting, the marketing director may take over when discussing the latest marketing campaigns.
Assign Roles to Keep Team Members Engaged
You can also get team members involved by assigning roles for each meeting. For example, you may rotate staff for certain roles, such as note keeper and timekeeper. This allows more people to actively participate in the meeting.