Writing Board Meeting Minutes

🎨🖊️ "Draw two circles under a rectangle…" "Now, make the circles connect to the rectangle" - some of the instructions that were given to me by our Head of Architecture during a recent offsite. We engaged in an exercise that underscored the importance of clear and effective communication. Each participant paired up, with one partner facing a screen displaying an image and the other facing a blank wall with a pen and paper. The challenge? The partner facing the screen had to guide their teammate in drawing the image using only directional and descriptive language. This exercise was a powerful reminder of how crucial it is to be clear, descriptive and thoughtful when sharing requirements, feedback or instructions. In the world of technology, we often fall into the trap of using complex language, acronyms, and omitting details we assume are "obvious." This can lead to confusion, misunderstandings, rework, and ultimately, wasted time. The key takeaway? Being specific doesn't always mean being overly detailed or long-winded. There's a beautiful balance between being specific and descriptive. It's about conveying the right amount of information in a way that's easily understood. Here are some common pitfalls to avoid when striving for specificity in communication: - Overloading with Details: Focus on the most relevant information to avoid overwhelming your audience. - Using Jargon and Acronyms: Consider your audience and provide explanations when necessary. - Assuming Shared Knowledge: Provide necessary context to ensure understanding. - Being Vague: Use precise language to prevent misunderstandings. - Neglecting the Audience's Perspective: Tailor your communication to the needs and understanding of your audience. I am reminded of a quote by Mark Twain: "I apologize for such a long letter - I didn't have time to write a short one." Concise communication takes time and effort, but it's always worth it. In our fast-paced world, mastering the art of effective communication is essential. It not only enhances collaboration but also drives efficiency and innovation. #Communication #Leadership #EffectiveCommunication

For years I took notes in meetings like my life depended on it. Typing every word. Missing every moment. I'd walk out with five pages of notes and still forget the one thing that actually mattered. Here's what finally clicked: taking notes isn't the same as paying attention. And it was never supposed to be your job. Your job is to be present. Let the machine handle the memory. Here's the 2-minute Claude workflow that takes notes for you, even if you never write a single word: 1. Install Your AI Notetaker Get Granola. It's the simplest AI notetaker out there. It runs quietly in the background on Zoom, Teams, or Meet. No bot joining the call. It just listens while you talk. 2. Join The Call And Forget It Don't take a single note. Don't type. Don't scramble. Just be present. Look people in the eye. Actually listen. This one shift changes how every meeting feels. 3. Open Claude, Not The Browser When the meeting ends, open the Claude app on your desktop. The app, not the browser tab. Click the "+" in the chat box and find Connectors. 4. Connect Your Tools In One Place Toggle on Granola, Gmail, and Slack together. Then pick the most powerful model and turn on extended thinking. Now Claude can see your meeting, your inbox, and your team chat all at once. 5. Pull And Summarize The Meeting Paste this: "Pull my last meeting from Granola. Summarize it in 5 bullets. List every action item assigned to me, with deadlines. Flag the 2-5 blockers I might hit." In seconds, the whole meeting becomes a clear plan. 6. Cross-Check Every Channel Paste this next: "Cross-check this with my Gmail thread and Slack discussion on this deal." Now nothing slips through the cracks between your tools. 7. Draft The Follow-Ups, Then Send Paste this: "Write the follow-up emails based on everything you just read. Save them as drafts in Gmail, not in the chat." Then review, tighten anything that needs your voice, and hit send. Meeting to action items in two minutes. The best operators aren't the ones with the most notes. They're the ones fully present in the room, because they built a system to remember for them. Stop transcribing your meetings. Start showing up to them. __ Enjoy this? ♻️ Repost it to your network and follow Matt Gray for more. Want to learn how a 30-minute voice memo becomes 30 days of content, leads, and clients? Join my free live Workshop on June 23rd (5 days away) to steal my homework: https://lnkd.in/eM7kshnK

Let’s stop romanticizing input. Start professionalizing decisions. Because a team that hears everyone but can’t converge isn’t inclusive but indecisive. I see it all the time: 1. Teams bring bold, diverse perspectives to the table. 2. They brainstorm, debate, expand thinking. 3. But when it's time to choose - silence, hesitation, power grabs, or rushed consensus. The biggest problem I see in companies is that they treat decision-making as a moment, not a discipline. That’s where I focus in my work with leadership teams: Not just on hearing more voices, but on building the muscle of inclusive decision-making as a repeatable process that turns diversity into direction. Here’s how we do it: 1️⃣ Make decision rights explicit.  Who decides? Who contributes? Who needs to know? 2️⃣ Separate idea generation from commitment. Diverge first. Converge second. 3️⃣ Create a decision rhythm. Clear steps, check-ins, and closure points. 4️⃣ Build psychological safety to challenge, not just speak. No point in diverse ideas if no one can question the status quo. Because diverse ideas only create value when a team knows how to decide together. P.S.: Does your team know how to end a conversation with a decision and not just more ideas? —————————— 👋 Hi, I’m Susanna. I help organizations build high-performing, inclusive cultures by turning psychological safety and diversity into business strategy. Let’s work on how your teams & leaders think, feel, and decide - together.

Let's talk about something I've observed being frequently overlooked in a businesses data strategy - the power of diverse perspectives in how we approach, interpret, and utilise our business data. Too often, businesses fall into the trap of viewing their data through a single / narrow lens - typically that of the data team or a specific functional. Here's the thing, your marketing team sees different patterns than your sales team. Your product teams spot trends that your technology team might miss. Your finance department's interpretation of the same metrics could reveal insights that operations never considered. I've learned that the real opportunities in data are discovered when you create environments where these different viewpoints can collide. It's not just about having the data - it's about fostering a culture where multiple perspectives can challenge assumptions, spot hidden opportunities, and identify blind spots in the analysis. Think about it, how many potential innovations or solutions have been missed because we limited who gets to ask questions of our data? How many insights have gone undiscovered because we stuck to conventional interpretation and operating frameworks? The key is building frameworks that actively encourage and capture these diverse viewpoints. This means: 🪂 Breaking down data silos between functions 🪂 Creating cross-functional data SME's 🪂 Establishing processes where different functions can regularly share their unique data insights 🪂Training teams to look beyond their immediate objectives when analysing data 🪂 Creating and maintaining tangible links between data and business context The future belongs to businesses that can harness the full spectrum of perspectives within their walls. What are you doing to ensure your data tells it's complete story? #DataStrategy #BusinessIntelligence #Innovation #Leadership #Diversity #Analytics #CognitiveDiversity

One of my clients was losing deals because of his own memory. He does 90 minute discovery calls. In person. Face to face. No Zoom. No transcript. He's locked in. Taking notes. Asking great questions. Then he gets back to his desk and realizes he can't remember half of what they said. Worse. He'd write down his interpretation of their words instead of their actual words. "They're concerned about timeline" instead of "We have to be live by March 1st or we lose the budget." Those details matter. They're the difference between a generic follow-up and one that makes them think "this guy actually listened." So we built him a system. Step 1: Record everything. He wears an AI recorder. Asks permission at the start of every meeting. 99 out of 100 say yes. "Just to make sure I'm fully present and catch everything. I have a note taker that records our conversation. That cool?" Nobody cares. They appreciate it. (If you’re on Zoom, you’ve no excuse. Get Fathom or Otter to record your calls) Step 2: Dump the transcript into ChatGPT. He has a prompt that organizes everything into a framework: → Pain points (with their exact quotes) → Success criteria → Stakeholders mentioned → Timeline signals → Budget reality Step 3: Force it to prioritize. "Give me the top 3 deal risks and the exact actions to mitigate them." No 15-point lists. No fluff. Just the three things that will kill this deal if he ignores them. Step 4: Generate the follow-up email. Separate prompt. Uses their language. References their goals. Their timeline. Their words. Not his. Step 5: Copy the whole thing into the CRM. One paste. Deal notes done. Next steps clear. Total time: 10 minutes. Before this system, he'd spend an hour writing notes and still miss things. Now he catches stuff he didn't even process in the moment. Last week he reviewed a transcript and found a throwaway comment from the buyer about needing board approval over $50K. He didn't catch it live. Too focused on the demo. The transcript caught it. Now he knows exactly how to structure the deal. Here's the thing: Your brain is fast at pattern recognition. It's terrible at precision recall. In the moment, they say something. You translate it. Write down your own version. But the words they use are more specific than the words you remember. Record everything. Let AI do the heavy lifting. You just show up and sell. — BTW: I use 4 custom GPTs to help me save 10 hours of time in sales per week. Want to see them? Check them out here: https://lnkd.in/g6X-nWaG

Most people use ChatGPT like a search engine. I use it as my executive operating system. Every week, I spend between 30 and 50 hours in meetings. Leadership reviews. Architecture discussions. Hiring. Customer escalations. Cross-functional planning. For years, I tried taking better notes. The problem wasn’t my note-taking. It was that no human can remember every decision, every commitment, every stakeholder concern, and every follow-up across dozens of conversations. So I built an AI Brain. Not another note-taking app. Not another chatbot. A system that captures everything, organizes context, and helps me make better decisions. Here’s how it works: → Every meeting is automatically transcribed. → ChatGPT extracts decisions, action items, risks, and stakeholder context. → Everything is organized by project, customer, and person. → Action items are pushed into my task manager automatically. → Every morning I receive an executive brief with the meetings, commitments, risks, and priorities that matter most. → Before important meetings, ChatGPT prepares me with previous decisions, stakeholder context, and recommended discussion points. The most valuable part isn’t the automation. It’s the retrieval. Instead of asking: “Can you summarize this meeting?” I ask: “What commitments have I made to this customer over the last three months?” or “What recurring blockers have slowed this project?” or “Prepare me for tomorrow’s roadmap review using every relevant meeting we’ve had.” That’s a completely different way of working. In my latest article, I share: • The complete AI Brain architecture • The ChatGPT prompts I use every day • My meeting-processing workflow • My task automation workflow • My executive briefing prompts • The no-code stack that powers everything The future isn’t about using AI to write faster. It’s about building systems that help you think better. If you’d like the full guide, comment “BRAIN” and I’ll send it over.

This week I'm sharing AI tools I use regularly — and more importantly, the less obvious ways I'm using them. Today: Granola, a meeting note-taker that I've completely repurposed as a learning assistant. I discovered it through Lenny Rachitsky's newsletter (paid subscribers get free access for a year), and while most people use it to capture meeting notes, I've stumbled upon another great use case. Here's how I make it work for me: Every time I watch a YouTube video, take a course, or listen to a podcast, I run Granola in the background. It captures the transcript and generates AI-powered notes while I add my own observations in real-time. Recently, I went through Ryan Law's thought leadership and editing courses. Granola captured everything: the transcript, my notes, and it also has functionality for me to add screenshots of visual concepts I wanted to remember. So here's where it gets interesting: I already live in Evernote for knowledge management. So I built a Zapier automation that transfers my Granola notes — complete with full transcripts — directly into Evernote. Now I have a completely searchable knowledge base. When I'm creating content and remember "there was this great insight about weasel words", I can actually find it. I can even chat with my notes in Granola to surface specific concepts and transcript citations. As a content creator, I consume a lot to create well. This system means those gems don't get lost. I'll drop some resources in the comments, including my Zapier article that dives deeper into Granola's features. How are you using AI tools in unexpected ways? On deck for tomorrow: How I used ElevenLabs agents to build a job interviewing agent 👀

From "𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐖𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠" to "𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗠𝗲": The Power of Open-Minded Asking And Five Steps To Conflict Resolution👇️ When disagreements flare up, our instincts often lead us to insults or attacks on not just the opposing viewpoint, but on the person as well. This never works. Vitriolic responses close more minds than they change, making enemies out of friends and rivals out of allies. Curiosity is more effective than verbal assault if you aim to genuinely convince others. The next time you lock horns with someone, try this approach to turn disagreement into open-minded dialogue: 𝟏) 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 Rather than impatiently waiting for your turn to retort, focus first on comprehending their perspective. Confirm what aspects you do agree with to build common ground. Suspend judgments as you ask clarifying questions to grasp why they came to this stance. 𝟐) 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐈𝐧𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 Once you comprehend their position, drill down diplomatically: “I’m curious why you feel that way. What led you to these conclusions?” People want to feel heard before opening up, so don’t invalidate their logic. 𝟑) 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫𝐬 People are more open to hearing you after you've listened to them—without interrupting or arguing. Now, you can explain your reasoning in a non-confrontational way. Find threads of commonality between your perspectives as you clarify why you landed differently. The goal is elucidating, not conquering, the other viewpoint. 𝟒) 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐏𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐀𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 Having traded views, ask, “Where do we agree?’ Name shared values, interests, or outcomes you both see as important. This reminds you that you likely have some common ground, even in disagreements. Remember: Everyone wants the same basic things out of life. You'd be surprised how often you and your adversary agree once you get past the superficial presentation of the ideas. 𝟓) 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 With mutual understanding built, you can bridge perspectives by asking, “How can we work together to get the best both worldviews?” Rather than clinging to singular stances, brainstorm creative solutions that integrate your collective wisdom. Heated debates often generate more hostility than progress. But by replacing reactive arguments with open-minded curiosity, you can transform conflict into wisdom-generating collaboration. Next time things get tense, set egos aside long enough to ask, “Why?” You might be surprised by what you can learn. #communication #community #onlinecommunities #personaldevelopment #connections #networking #socialnetworking

Can You Grab Leaders’ Attention with One Sentence? In business, everyone relies on written communication. But have you ever stopped to consider how the quality of your writing affects your influence and credibility—especially with senior leaders? Twenty years ago, I learned a simple yet powerful exercise that has stuck with me ever since. It’s based on how journalists craft headlines. Here’s the idea: Headlines are designed to communicate maximum information with minimum words. Go to your preferred news source, pick a headline, and analyze it. Count the number of words and the number of facts or data points it conveys. For example, I recently came across this headline on the BBC: “Éowyn strongest storm in 10 years, says Met Office.” This headline is only 9 words long, but it delivers 5 key facts: 1. Éowyn is the name of the storm. 2. “Strongest” tells us its intensity. 3. It’s a storm (the subject). 4. “10 years” provides the time context. 5. The Met Office is the credible source behind this statement. Now let’s look at the next sentence in the article: “Storm Éowyn was ‘probably the strongest storm’ to hit the UK in at least 10 years, the Met Office has said, after hundreds of thousands of people were left without power following wind gusts in excess of 100mph.” This sentence expands on the headline with 38 words and delivers 11 facts—adding depth while still being clear and concise. So, what’s the lesson here? Writing clear, concise sentences—especially in leadership communication—is critical to convey ideas effectively without wasting your reader’s time. Leaders are busy; they don’t want fluff—they want clarity and impact. Everyone can improve with practice, here’s how you can improve your written communication: • Identify your key facts: What are the essential points you need to convey? • Remove unnecessary words: Edit ruthlessly for clarity and brevity. The goal is simple: Make every word count so your message resonates with maximum impact. What do you think? Do you have any tips or exercises that have helped you write more effectively? Let’s discuss in the comments—I’d love to hear from you! #thereflectiveexecutive