The Meeting Problem

If you feel like you spend your entire life trapped in Zoom calls, you aren’t alone. Roughly one billion meetings happen daily worldwide, and CEOs are lowkey living in them, spending nearly 75% of their day in sessions. For the longest time, we just accepted this as the default setting of adult employment. But now, "meeting science" is officially a thing. Psychologists are finally looking at data from virtual meetings to figure out what actually makes these sessions productive versus a total L.

The Listening Gap

Real talk: your boss probably thinks your team meetings are going great, but that’s likely because they’re doing all the talking. Research from organizational psychologist Nale Lehmann-Willenbrock shows that when leaders dominate the conversation, they walk away feeling highkey positive about the meeting, while everyone else is just exhausted. The science is clear: for a meeting to actually hit, leaders need to shift from talking to attentive, active listening.

Making Meetings Less Mid

How do we fix the vibes? The experts have some tips that are honestly just common sense, but most workplaces ignore them:

  • Warm it up: For introverts, that pre-meeting small talk is actually essential for getting comfortable enough to speak up later.
  • Silent Brainstorming: Instead of a chaotic free-for-all where the loudest person wins, try "brainwriting." Everyone types their ideas into a shared doc or chat at the same time. It’s way more inclusive and helps shy folks contribute without the pressure.
  • Support Neurodiversity: Research by Zofia Walters shows that people with ADHD often experience higher levels of "meeting fatigue," especially when cameras are required to be on for hours. Strategies like clear written instructions and structured check-ins aren't just "nice to haves"—they’re productivity boosters for everyone.

Why it matters

We’re currently in a situation where aimless meetings are the "menace" of our work lives. Research shows that back-to-back scheduling kills productivity, especially when you have complex tasks to finish. By cutting down on the noise and focusing on structured, inclusive communication, we can stop treating meetings like a daily chore and actually get our work done.