A few years ago I was on a large company project where key resources worked in multiple locations throughout the United States. I joined the project when it was in an official state of chaos or in project lingo “status: red”. The entire team was stressed out and the Project Manager and Program Manager were overwhelmed with the size, scope and complexity of the project. They were unsure of how to get things back on track.
I did not enter the scene with any answers for them in fact, I peppered them with a whole lot of questions as I tried to wrap my brain around the size, scope and complexity of the project. Within my first week on the project I was dizzy with the number of directions the Program Manager, Project Manager and now I were being pulled. I realized in that first week that if I didn’t start taking notes I would never be able to get it all straight.
By the end of week two I had amassed a nice stash of notes and had discovered that the act of taking notes seemed to be helping me remember complex information much more quickly. I was also benefiting from the notes because I had something tangible, reliable and real to refer back to. My memory is many things but reliable it is not.
Shortly after I started I was in a meeting with the Program Manager and Project Manager discussing an earlier team meeting. The three of us each had different recollections of something someone else had said. I happened to have my laptop with me so I told them I thought I had taken notes in the meeting. I flipped open my laptop, found the notes, spun the screen in their direction and let them read what I had written. After they finished reading they both were in agreement that the notes were accurate and presto magico we were all very quickly on the same page and able to proceed with our meeting.
Ever since then I have become quite diligent about taking notes. Not only in my meetings but in all meetings. Sometimes I share my notes with other attendees or potentially interested parties. Other times I simply file them away for my own use should I need to take a walk down Meeting Memory Lane.
For me to take good notes it is critical that I have access to a laptop since I cannot read my own handwriting. I can generally take notes in any text based application. In many cases a plain old text file will do. Since I work in technology there are often meetings where workflows, process flows, system diagrams and other things are charted out on whiteboards. For that reason I also like to have my cell phone camera and MS Visio handy.
There has never been a time where I have regretted having notes but there have certainly been times when I have regretted NOT having them. I typically document the following key information:
- Who attended and who was absent.
- Date of meeting
- Subject
- Action Items
- Requirements/Decisions
- Key discussion points where varying opinion/ideas exist
I can’t say that I love taking notes but I sure do love having them. They help me out in so many ways and I know I have co-workers (past and present) that have benefited from them as well.
I recently read an article called Cover Your Butt At Work With Thorough Notes. It gives several great reasons why you should take notes. You can keep track of much more than meeting minutes with good notes.
Do you take notes at the office? Why or why not?
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I think taking notes is really important and I used to be pretty disciplined about this when I had you, know, a regular job:) I am still a big note-taker — take notes during calls, write notes to myself, etc.
I remember once being in a meeting with a pretty high-powered executive, a woman. She took notes the entire time. I was surprised — usually people like that don’t. So I asked her. She said she does it for 3 reasons: to better remember things that go on, to have a good personal record of what she got from the meeting, and to look busy even when she is really bored:)
Nataly | January 17th, 2008 at 10:05 am
I adore your blog, Kathy! This was seriously good advice. It’s not only good to take notes during meetings, but making quick note of phone calls in a notebook is helpful too.
Anne Florenzano | January 17th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
Notes are invaluable - I’m another one with an unreliable memory, but I find that the act of writing it down actually helps make an impression on my brain.
I’m inconsistent about note-taking in meetings these days, though - largely because I don’t have to go to many, and the ones that I do go to often seem to wander off on tangents that aren’t relevant or worth documenting. I also find that sometimes I’ll miss something that just happened while in the act of making the notes!
Your framework for notes is great, Kathy - I just might steal it.
Thanks for another great post!
Florinda | January 18th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
Kathy
I’m a HUGE note-taker. When I first started in my second career, I was trading currencies for a coproration - so I was getting prices on the phone and having to convert one currency to another and confirm both amounts. The person training me for the job carried a spiral bound notebook with him everywhere and wrote down all his trade information there before transcribing to a trade ticket. I started that practice, and pretty soon I found I was writing down everything in the notebook - trades, phone calls, meeting notes…you name it. I’m old fashioned and its not electronic, but it works for me (fortunately, my writing is legible).
Well here I am 15 years later and I’m never without my notebook. When I joined my current company 3 years ago, I made a little joke with my boss about my anal notebook fetish, but explained that its invaluable and I can usually refer back to my notes and refresh my memory on almost anything that has gone on. Needless to say, he has had more than one occasion over the ensuing years to ask me to verify some point from a meeting…and I can generally flip right to it in my notebook. He is amazed and says every time that he needs to take up the note taking practice…but he never does. Me - I just keep writing everything down!!!
Karen | January 22nd, 2008 at 8:52 am
Notes for me are key. I always have to take notes when I’m on an important phone call so that I can remember all key points and information. You just validated ME! Thanks, KathyHowe ;).
Mandy | January 22nd, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Actually, part of my job repsonsibility is documenting what happens at our big Program board meetings, so I have refined my note-taking techniques. And I do continue my note-taking in other meetings. I used to have an extremely sharp memory, but as a medical condition has affected my recall abilities, my notes are no longer nice-to-have but essential.
KathyK | January 27th, 2008 at 10:32 am