Is the Military wasting too much time in meetings?

Be brief, Be brilliant, Be gone....

Isn't the entire purpose of the military daily routine is to hurry up and wait?

Way to much time spent. If you want a meeting fine. Out out what needs to be put out, then ask for questions. If it is going to be a long question, see me off line! Easy peasy!

I'll have to answer later I am in a meeting. It has been a long one (I retired from the military in July 1986.)

I spend much of my UTAs in meetings. It's a necessary evil sometimes, but it's frustrating. There is minimal time for actual training.

I have had days where I had to go to 2-3 meetings in one day. For the officers and senior enlisted in my unit it is even worse. They are constantly at a meeting and never have the chance to get anything done. Most of them have to stay at work until 2000-2200 just to get their normal duties done. My unit also likes to schedule meetings early in the morning 0500-0700. This means that a lot of leadership misses out on PT and ends up spending literally all their time at meetings.

Meetings, just to have meetings, serve no useful purpose. Meetings should be have an agenda and be short and to the point.

Unless I'm missing something, I think it's kind of funny.........

They had a meeting about meetings and determined there are too many meetings.

Army Strong or something.

Successful meetings require a few things:

1. Clear Purpose and Agenda
2. Recommendations for further action (research, etc.)
3. Decisions (If you have a meeting and don't make decisions, what is the point?)

If you aren't getting those things done, the meetings aren't going to be effective. I think a lot of people have meetings just to appear productive. People should come ready for the topic or reason for the meeting and ready to make recommendations to the decision maker.

In the Navy it was less time wasted in meetings, and more time wasted painting. Everything got painted. When painting was finished, the color was changed so paint it again in the new color. Then when painting is complete, give it another coat just to make sure. Six months after commissioning the ship displaces an extra two tons just from all the painting that has taken place.