Avoiding Vampire Meetings

Whenever an office meeting takes place, there are those people who take up most of the time and energy of people. These people are vampires. They're not the typical creatures of the night that some might remember from old wives' tales but most of them prey on someone like they're counterparts.

They're called as such because they simply sap the energy out of people whenever they're in a room. These people are the ones who ramble on and on with no particular goal and purpose in sight. This particular individual is said to be one of the most difficult persons to deal with in a meeting simply because he or she does not know that the behavior he is showing takes away more from the productivity of the meeting than anything else.

A professional meeting facilitator in the person of Peg Kelley ascribes to these meaningless talkers the term "meeting vampires". Kelley is the founder of Facilitation Plus and the author of the booklet "39 Secrets for Effective and Enjoyable Meetings". If you know what signs to look out for, you will be able to spot a "meeting vampire".

One of the indicators that you have a meeting vampire in the room is many people are defensive or if the participation of the group is quite spotty. If one person dominates a conversation, it could be one of the signs you're looking for. Another thing is that if ideas and decisions for the group are a bit vague without clear endpoints, then you might just have found a meeting vampire.

If this particular scenario plays over and over again in an office meeting, it will do more to take away from the meeting than add to it. The effects are obviously bad and one should be able to fix it as soon as possible.

One important thing that you should remember as well is not only people can be considered vampires. Other factors will no doubt play a role in sucking the life out of the meeting. Examples of these so-called factors are poor ventilation of the room, uncomfortable chairs or the place being too cold or too hot.

Whenever you're going to a meeting, be sure to be on the lookout for these things or these people. It's important that you immediately identify these vampires so that you'll be able to address them properly and salvage whatever's left of your meeting.