Preparing for Client Meetings

Ever been thrilled to kick off a new coaching or facilitation project, only to have things unravel before your eyes? You’ve got the green light, your client’s excited, you’re excited... and then: 😬 Deliverables turn into moving targets. 🫨 Tasks start sneaking into the scope. 🙄 Communication becomes reactive. 🙄 And somehow, you're doing more than you signed up for. Sound familiar? These issues can lead to frustrated clients, strained relationships, and results that don’t reflect your expertise. Worse, you’re left questioning your own abilities. The root cause? Poorly initiated projects. The fix? A rock-solid kickoff meeting. Here’s how I run mine to set the stage for smooth sailing: 1️⃣ Set the agenda and introduce the team. Share the agenda in advance so everyone’s prepared. A quick intro sets a collaborative tone. 2️⃣ Review the project overview. Revisit the high-level goals and objectives. Frame it as a partnership—you’re in this together. 3️⃣ Explore hopes and fears. Ask what success looks like for the client, but also what could go wrong. Addressing fears early helps build trust. 4️⃣ Create a risk and opportunity register. Most people track risks, but don’t stop there. Highlight opportunities to amplify success—maybe another internal initiative aligns with your work. 5️⃣ Revisit the timeline. Pull the timeline from your proposal and check if it still works. Revise as needed and confirm key milestones. 6️⃣ Discuss team culture and expectations. How do you want to work together? Align on communication styles and ways of working to avoid surprises later. 7️⃣ Define next steps. End with clarity: What happens next, and who’s responsible for what? 💡 Pro tip: Send pre-work in advance, like a draft risk/opportunity register. The meeting should refine, not start from scratch. The result? ✅ Clarity ✅ Alignment ✅ stronger relationships. A well-run kickoff leads to happy clients, repeat business, and—you guessed it—referrals. Start strong, finish stronger. ~~ ✍️ What’s one thing you always include in your project kickoff? Let me know in the comments! 👇

I hear this all the time from salespeople. The stress and struggle with meeting customer deadlines. During a session I delivered last week on forecasting and pipeline accuracy, I asked this sales team if this is an issue for them. Every hand went up.   When I asked why, the floodgates of assumptions opened.   🌟 Clients are demanding. They want everything yesterday. 🌟 The first responder wins. 🌟 I need to get this to them ASAP or I'll lose their business. 🌟 I have to drop everything just to hit a deadline, sacrificing my other responsibilities and my personal life.   👉Consider this: What if most of the stress you experience is self-imposed? 🤯   For example, you have a customer who needs a proposal. "The customer is expecting it yesterday!" you assume. You panic, as you look at your calendar for the week.   "When am I going to get this done?" The overwhelm takes over.    Here's the irony about managing and meeting customer expectations.   The customer didn’t set the deadline. The salesperson did! And all of this is based in the FEAR of loss and the ASSUMPTIONS they think the customer wants.   Rather than assume what they want, have them create the deadline! Here's the talk track to get your time back, eliminate the problem of overcommitting and meet expectations every time.   You: "Dear customer, when is the latest you need this proposal by?"   Customer: "Next Thursday should be fine, no rush, as I’m traveling."   You: "Okay, so if I get this proposal to you by next Thursday, when would you have a chance to review this?"   Customer: "I'll need to meet with the two other stakeholders to review this. And that won't happen until the following Tuesday."   You: "Great, let’s go ahead and schedule our next conversation after your meeting, so I'm being responsive for you and we keep the momentum going. What works for you?"   #sales #quota #proposals

We’ve all been there. You’re in a meeting. You open your mouth, ideas spill out like octopus tentacles, and by the end no one knows what you meant. And you feel like you’ve blown it. Nothing is worse than knowing what you want to say, but not knowing how to say it. Here’s how to tame that octopus and speak with confidence (even under pressure): Imagine your boss asks: “What are your team’s biggest challenges this quarter?” First, pause. Take a moment to clarify your thoughts – the reason we can get tongue-tied is we try to come up with the answer after we already started speaking. Untamed Octopus Answer: “Well, we’re a new team, so there are priorities, and then tools, and also global alignment across regions, and that reminds me of…” (you get the idea) Tamed Octopus Answer: You pause. Jot notes. Circle 3. Then respond: “Our biggest Q2 challenges are: • Priorities - separating the important from the unimportant. • Tools - deciding between in-house vs. third-party. • Global alignment - teams across US, Europe, and Asia.” You expand briefly on each. Then you summarize again: “So, priorities, tools, and global alignment. Same content. Radically different impact. Here’s how to tame your own octopus in any meeting, interview, or pitch: 1. Pause before speaking (it makes you look thoughtful before you’ve even said a word) 2. Jot down your ideas (you probably have 10) and circle your top 3 3. Organize into buckets: “First… Second… Third…” 4. Add gestures: Say “First… Second… Third…” (and even count on your fingers). Research shows gestures improve comprehension by 60% 5. Summarize again: Repetition cements your message and makes it easy for others to pass along your points accurately It’s simple, but it changes how others perceive you: more confident, more credible, more clear.

Regardless of how great your ideas are in your virtual sales pitch, webinar, or team meeting… People are most likely checking their email, browsing social media, or working on other things while you present. How can you prevent that and actually get your audience to pay attention? Here are 4 of the most powerful techniques we use for our own virtual training courses: 1. Win the first five seconds According to research from the University of Toronto, people need only five seconds to gauge your charisma and leadership as a speaker. In virtual environments, this first impression is even more critical. To establish instant rapport: - Keep your posture open and inviting (avoid fidgeting, crossed arms, and closed-off postures) - Use open gestures that welcome the audience into your space - Gesture with your palms showing at a 45-degree angle - Speak with clear articulation and energy from the very first word The quickest way to lose your audience? Starting with tentative body language that signals you’re unsure or unprepared. 2. Design your presentation for virtual viewing When designing slides, assume varied viewing conditions. Design for the smallest likely device and the slowest likely Internet speed. Make your slides accessible by: - Using larger fonts (24-32pt) - Applying higher contrast colors - Limiting each slide to ONE clear idea - Adding more space between lines when using smaller text - Stripping excess content (you can provide additional information in a separate document) 3. Vary your delivery Our research shows the optimal length for linear presentations is just 16-30 minutes, while interactive ones can maintain engagement for 30-45 minutes. People’s attention will go through peaks and valleys during that time, so try these techniques to keep their attention: - Vary your speaking pace (faster to convey urgency, slower to express gravity) - Use intentional pauses to let key points land - Adjust your vocal tone (lower pitch for authority, higher for approachability) - Shift between slides, stories, and data at regular intervals Each change helps reset your audience’s attention and signals importance. 4. Build in structured interaction Don’t make your audience wait until the end of your presentation to interact. According to our research, presentations that incorporate audience engagement through polls, chat responses, or breakout discussions maintain attention longer. For the highest engagement: - Use a variety of interaction types throughout your presentation - Incorporate breakout rooms for small-group discussions - Switch modalities regularly to keep it interesting Remember: In virtual environments, you need to recreate the natural engagement that happens in person. Your virtual presentation success isn’t measured by perfection…it’s measured by action. Master these techniques and your audience won’t just pay attention, they’ll respond. #VirtualPresentations #CorporateTraining #WorkplaceLearning

If your meeting doesn't have an agenda, it's probably a waste of time. We've all been in meetings where no one really knows why they're there or what's about to happen. Always attach an agenda doc or at least a clear description when you schedule a meeting. Titles like "Project Sync" or "Team Catch-up" don't cut it. A good agenda gives everyone context, shows how to prepare, and ensures the meeting actually moves things forward. Highly unlikely, but if some or all participants review the agenda in advance, the meeting runs smoothly. They come ready with the right information, prepared to contribute instead of reacting on the spot. For you, as the organizer, writing down your questions, objectives, or discussion points also helps. It makes sure you don't forget anything important. Apart from the usuals, this also - Keeps the conversation on track - Pushes the meeting toward clear outcomes - Acts as a record of decisions and action items By the way, it also lets people decide if they really need to attend, or if they can just give input async. That alone saves a ton of wasted time. Most importantly, it shows that you respect everyone's time. You're not pulling people in "just because" you've thought it through and given them a reason to be there. By the way, if you are senior enough, you can even go berserk and be like - no agenda, no meeting. But yes, until then, start setting an agenda in your meeting invites.

Effective client management begins with proactive engagement, anticipating needs and potential hurdles. Mastering the art of listening plays a crucial role in this approach, allowing us to gain deep insights into our clients' operations and strategic objectives. Imagine setting the stage at the beginning of a project by discussing with your client: Dependency Exploration: 'Can we discuss any dependencies your team has on this project’s milestones? Understanding these can help us ensure alignment and timely delivery.' Impact Assessment Question: 'Should unforeseen delays occur, what impacts would be most critical to your operations? This will help us prioritize our project management and contingency strategies.' Preventive Planning Query: 'What preemptive steps can we take together to minimize potential disruptions to critical milestones?' Success Criteria Definition: 'How do you define success for this project? Understanding your criteria for success will guide our efforts and help us focus on achieving the specific outcomes you expect.' These discussions are essential for building a roadmap that not only aligns with the client’s expectations but also prepares both sides for potential challenges, reinforcing trust through transparency and commitment. By adopting a listening approach that seeks comprehensive understanding from the onset, we can better manage projects and enhance client satisfaction. Let’s encourage our teams to integrate these listening strategies into their initial client engagements. How have proactive discussions influenced your project outcomes? Share your experiences and insights. #ClientRelationships #AdvancedListening #BusinessStrategy #ProfessionalGrowth

Most meetings don’t fail in the room. They fail before they start… and after they end. A meeting is not a 60-minute calendar block. It’s a process with 3 stages: Before. During. After. If you fix these, meetings become productive instead of performative. 1. Start with a written purpose (Before) If the meeting objective cannot be written in one clear sentence, cancel it. Bad: “Let’s discuss the project.” Good: “By the end, we will decide X and assign ownership for Y.” No purpose = no meeting. 2. Invite only owners, not spectators (Before) Meetings are not webinars. If someone is not: Deciding Contributing critical input Owning an action They don’t need to be there. Fewer people = faster decisions. 3. Share material in advance (Before) Meetings are for discussion and decisions, not silent reading. If people are seeing slides for the first time in the meeting, you’ve already lost half the time. Send pre-reads. Expect people to come prepared. 4. Run the meeting like a decision factory (During) Every agenda item must end in one of three outcomes: Decision made Action assigned (with owner + deadline) Explicitly parked If conversation is interesting but going nowhere, park it. Meetings are not thinking-out-loud therapy sessions. 5. Close the loop fast (After) The real work starts when the meeting ends. Within 24 hours, share: Decisions taken Actions, owners, deadlines What was parked If follow-ups are not tracked, meetings are just expensive conversations. A good meeting starts before the meeting and ends long after it. Preparation creates clarity. Follow-up creates results. Everything in between is just facilitation. Are you running or ruining your meetings? Which one of these tips makes most sense to you? ++++ I try to share practical, direct, no “cute crap" work/career tips. Follow me at Anshuman Tiwari and press the bell icon twice on my profile to get notifications when I post.

Most BAs think requirements meetings and elicitation is about asking questions. Great BAs know it is about creating clarity and confidence, and good questions are the tool. Success looks like: • Stakeholders feel heard and understood • You uncover assumptions, risks, and constraints early • You leave the meeting with shared language and shared meaning The missed step for many? Setting expectations before the meeting. Too many BAs jump into elicitation without aligning on objectives, outcomes, or decision points. Better prep leads to better requirements. Always set the room up to think, not just respond.

No one is waking up at 7am, sipping coffee, thinking, “Wow, I really hope someone explains holistic wealth architecture today.” People want clarity. They want content that feels like a conversation, not a lecture. They want to understand what you’re saying the first time they read it. Write like you're talking to a real person. Not trying to win a Pulitzer. - Use short sentences. - Cut the jargon. - Sound like someone they’d trust with their money, not someone who spends weekends writing whitepapers for fun. Confused clients don’t ask for clarification. They move on. Here’s how to make your content clearer: 1. Ask yourself: Would my mom understand this? If the answer is “probably not,” simplify it until she would. No shade to your mom, she’s just a great clarity filter. 2. Use the “friend test.” Read it out loud. If it sounds weird or overly stiff, imagine explaining it to a friend at lunch. Rewrite it like that. 3. Replace jargon with real words. Say “retirement income you won’t outlive” instead of “longevity risk mitigation strategy.” Your clients are not Googling your vocabulary. 4. Stick to one idea per sentence. If your sentence is doing cartwheels and dragging a comma parade behind it, break it up. 5. Format like you actually want them to read it. Use line breaks. Add white space. Make it skimmable. No one wants to read a block of text the size of a mortgage document. Writing clearly isn’t dumbing it down. It’s respecting your audience enough to make content easy to understand. What’s the worst jargon-filled phrase you’ve seen in the wild? Let’s roast it.

Ok, raise your hand if you've ever been the "fuzzy meeting person." 🙋♀️ 🙋♀️ 🙋♀️ I’d schedule sessions with no clear agenda, no defined outcome, basically, “let's chat and figure it out.” I’d leave half-exhausted, half-confused, thinking: "Did anything just get decided? Who’s doing what? Could this have been an email?" Probably everyone else thought that too. Waste of time. It took me a while, but I realized: the problem wasn’t the team. It was me. My meetings lacked clarity + intent. So I decided to get scientific about it. I started analyzing my meeting transcriptions with CoPilot. I wanted to see: - How much time I spent talking vs listening - How often I stated an explicit decision - Where confusion or rambling crept in The results were… eye-opening. I wasn’t just scheduling fuzzy meetings, I was enabling them. Here’s the system I built to fix it: Step 1. Define the single purpose (SO IMPORTANT) Every meeting needs a north star: “By the end, what should people know, decide, or do?” Step 2. Structure the agenda around outcomes List topics → assign a single desired outcome + time limit. Step 3. Prep key points, lead with decisions Skip long-winded context. Deliver the decision first, context second. Step 4. Track your talk ratio Use AI to see if you’re dominating or clarifying. Adjust accordingly. Step 5. End with explicit next steps Who does what, by when. No assumptions. Step 6. Follow up in writing 1–2 bullets summarizing decisions + assigned owners (you can do this with AI). Send within 24 hours. I also send transcripts if necessary. The transformation? Meetings went from draining and fuzzy → purposeful, productive, and trust-building. My coworkers leave knowing exactly what to do, and I finally stopped wondering why work wasn’t getting done. People like me more (hopefully?). Also, generally reduced my meeting frequency by 20ish%. Effectiveness frees us time, who knew. Moral: meetings are time, money, and trust. If people feel like you schedule fuzzy meetings, they'll be less committed. Use those steps to focus more on your clarity and intent. How do you make meetings more effective?