For those who remember the days when office working was the predominant scenario, do you also remember how beneficial those chats were while getting water between meetings? Either from the interaction with others reflecting, as above, or just through learning by osmosis from listening to others reflect. Jumping from one meeting straight to another does not allow that. Of course, in the virtual world there are additional challenges. But nothing is stopping us from scheduling an extra period of time immediately after a meeting – with a client, customer or different team – to grab a drink and reflect together. Surely there is no time like the present for an initial chat, even if you then schedule a follow-up later.

We also need to consider our general well-being and mental health. It is hard to see how back-to-back meetings support this. Stepping away from the screen is good for our eyes. Standing up and moving around, or going outside for five minutes of fresh air is good for our bodies and minds. And just the stress of falling from one meeting straight into another can’t be good for us either.

In much of our work we are looking for innovative thinking, bringing new ideas and solutions to the table. Protected time is most definitely a catalyst for innovative thinking. It’s not by chance you always have those great ideas when you’re in the shower! Ensuring we give ourselves that time in between meetings is therefore also important for the quality of our work.

Where are you going to find all this extra time, you are perhaps asking? Firstly, we should not see this as extra time, but rather time spent enhancing the quality of our work, our professional development and general well-being. All of which should be considered essential, not additional. But perhaps alongside the desire to manage our time between meetings differently, we can also challenge how we are spending the meeting time itself. Can we be more efficient in the meeting? Do we need to be in the meeting, or be there for the whole of the meeting? Is the meeting itself actually required? That is not to say that in a hybrid world, the act of teams meeting virtually isn’t important to maintain a feeling of inclusion and connection. But can these sometimes be drop-in sessions for example, where individuals choose to join or not, and there is no perception either way? For most meetings, however, it is often easier just to say yes, than politely suggest you do not attend a meeting, or only attend for part of it. But we should be brave and recognise that, when appropriate, doing so is a positive step as we are using the time available to achieve more.

Well, have I convinced you? Next time you are asked to book or attend a meeting, will you be joining my revolution?

Mike Dixon is CEO of the Healthcare Communications Association and a communications consultant