Warning: Problem Solving at 8 AM and 6 PM Sucks

The human mind processes billions of bits of information every day. But just like the highway getting clogged at rush hour, your mental freeways aren't free at certain times, either.

First thing in the morning, your brain flits around, already solving problems like these: “How am I going to get the information I need to get that report finished? When's payday? My right-front tire looks low, maybe I need to check the pressure. What meetings am I supposed to be in today, and how can I get out of a couple of them?”

The end of the day can be just as bad, if not worse. “Do I have any food in the house? Am I supposed to pick up Junior from practice, or is he going over to his friend's house? Has the electric bill been paid? Do I have to do laundry for tomorrow? Did I make an appointment for little Coconut at the vet? Oh, I need to check the air pressure in the tire before I get on the highway.”

Would you call a phone number when you know it's busy? Then why try to reach the minds of your audience members when you know they're already busy processing a batch of information? Better to schedule your meeting for a time after the first batch of info has been processed and filed and before the next delivery of problems is expected.

Think of it this way: Diversions between those rush hours can even be welcomed. But trying to access people in the midst of other problems will be met less enthusiastically.

Facilitator SRDs

• While you might be most effective at 8 AM, it doesn't mean everyone is!
• If you plan on having the meeting at 6 PM, make sure it includes the offer of dinner and possibly a drink (if corporate liability laws permit).
• Late meetings require extra engagement techniques, so your ability to keep it upbeat and fun will be tested more than in midafternoon.
• If you're leading a late meeting, use one of the speed meeting techniques discussed in Agenda Item 3, Part 2. Quickly finish your detailed meeting objectives and go on to the evening's entertainment plans.
• If you have bad news to share and think waiting until the close of business will make it easier, then think again. Get bad news over with early, not late.

Attendee SRDs

• If it's a late meeting, you'd darn well better go in with guns ablazin'. Be prepared to get the job done and get out. People who are tired at the end of the day tend to move and think slowly. If the meeting starts this way, then step up and move the agenda along briskly, or risk spending the night in your cubicle.
• If called to attend a meeting first thing in the morning, take a few minutes, at least, to prepare for it before leaving work the day before. Don't wait until the morning; too many variables, including heavy traffic, could prevent you from making it happen before your morning meeting.
• Spend the extra buck on the double espresso shot in your skinny caramel macchiato on the way to your morning meeting.

If it's a once-a-year late meeting and dinner-type ordeal, simply make the most of it. Get the job done effectively by going in prepared and keeping the group focused. Keep away from any topics that could be addressed at other times. They'll only prolong the agony.