Live Doc Meeting
Every meeting has a shared agenda document linked in the invite. Participants write their questions into a numbered list before the call, the meeting works through them in order, and everyone who is not talking takes notes inline under each item. Each person is invited to say their own question aloud; if they would rather not, the host reads it for them.
Use for recurring team meetings or cross-time-zone meetings where people who could not attend need to know exactly what was said and decided.
Solves: Meetings without written agendas only help the people who were in them, and even they forget what was agreed.
- 1
Step 1: Create the agenda doc, set it to editable by all, and link it in the invite at least 24 hours ahead. Add goals, expected outcomes and any pre-read.
- 2
Step 2: Participants add their topics and questions as a numbered list, prefaced with their name, before the meeting.
- 3
Step 3: The host opens with one or two minutes of context, not a presentation (2 min).
- 4
Step 4: Work through the list in order. Ask each named person if they want to verbalise their item; if not, the host reads it out (15-40 min).
- 5
Step 5: Whoever is not speaking writes notes under the item being discussed. Make proposals that can be answered with a simple yes.
- 6
Step 6: Close by tagging action items with owners. For people in other time zones, leave decisions open for comment for 24-48 hours (3 min).
- Use numbered lists, not bullets. "Item 3, Sam, do you want to verbalise that?" keeps everyone on the same line.
- Stick to the order of the list. It is the simplest guard against the loudest person taking the agenda.
- Read questions aloud even if they were already answered in writing; the recording then contains everything.
- Record the call and link the recording in the doc within 12 hours for people in other time zones.