This may be a very simple concept, but if done correctly will dramatically affect the success of your business from building, opening, running and developing your float center.

My biggest lament is that Sandra and I didn’t start this until about 3 months ago. It has completely changed our efficiency as business owners. Projects are developing faster, I am more aware of what is happening in our business and we are actually more motivated day to day.

The simple trick? Face to face time. Having a meeting that covers everything that is going on in your business. Email is great, texting is great (you’d be surprised how much Sandra and I do this even though we work and live together!), but there is nothing like face to face time. Ideas spark when sharing ideas, more excitement is shared regarding projects and clearer visions are made between each other when sitting in the same room together.

Pretty obvious, right? But just because you make time to have a meeting doesn’t mean you are getting the most out of it. Here is what I’ve learned:

Keep a Log
I love Googe Docs because everyone can see the same page at the same time as well as live updates/edits. But really any note taking system will do. Create three columns in your document. The leftmost will be for “Topics”. The center column for “Discussion” and the rightmost for “To Do’s” or “Action Items”

Date the location and date and time of your meeting. Each future meeting, copy the previous column and run through it again. Continue to add new items as necessary and eventually topics will not need to be carried over as they are considered complete.

Topics
Anything is on the table. If it’s about your business and you feel it’s important, add it to the list.
Discussion
What is the problem, how do people feel about a topic, what was said in the meeting that should be noted? what’s the end goal for this topic? In the future updates on the project will also go here.
Action Items
What’s the next step? What should be done by the following meeting?

Meet Weekly
Make it a day that you know each week you will be there for. If you know someone won’t be able to make the meeting, reschedule it for another day/time within a few days of your designated meeting time. You will amazed about how much more on the pulse you are of your business. If you like being friends or lovers with your business partner, this is also a great way to define “work time” for your business discussions. Sure, you’ll still want to share ideas and troubleshoot throughout the week, but the real nitty gritty now has a home. You may even find yourself saving topics that can wait until the next weeks meeting.

Stay On Topic
This is your one hour (or two in the beginning) a week to talk business. Get the most out of it. Share personal updates and stories after the meeting. Keep an open mind and be prepared to listen as much as you are prepared to share.  

Check the log throughout the week
You will begin to find that as you work each day, you are making sure you are completing last week’s To Do’s. Go ahead and open up your notes page and jot down any updates on a topic using the notes feature or by simply using a different colored font.

I cannot express how much this has changed how Sandra and I run our business. If we had only been doing this since day one, we would have been running so much more efficiently and would have even improved those rough periods of our personal relationship. I implore you to try this for a month (no-matter what stage of your business you are in) and see how dramatically it changes how you operate.

Liked it? Take a second to support Art of the Float on Patreon!