If you’ve ever walked out of a meeting thinking, “What did we even accomplish?” — you’re not alone. Most leaders spend hours each week in meetings that are unclear, unfocused, and ultimately unproductive.
But what if there was a simple way to change that?
In Episode 14 of The Leadership Lab podcast, I sat down with Dr. Jim Beilstein, Vice President of Global Operations & Supply Chain at Owens Corning. Jim leads a global network of 6,000+ employees and presents to senior executives regularly. After thousands of meetings, he has refined a method that consistently produces clarity, confidence, and meaningful results.
👇 Here’s the one question he recommends asking before any meeting:
“What outcome do I want from this meeting?”
It sounds simple. But this single question changes everything:
- It sharpens your agenda
- It clarifies your message
- It guides your preparation
- It sets expectations for everyone in the room
When you're intentional about the outcome, you create meetings that actually move projects forward instead of meetings that just create more meetings.
🎯 Inside our conversation, we explore:
- Why most meetings fail before they even start
- A repeatable checklist top executives use to prepare effectively
- How to tailor your message based on your audience
- Ways to answer tough questions with confidence — even when you don’t know the answer
- How AI tools like Copilot can streamline preparation and note-taking
Jim’s approach isn’t about doing more — it’s about doing less, more intentionally.
📌 Your leadership experiment this week:
Before your next meeting, pause and ask yourself:
“What result do I want when this meeting is over?”
Bonus points if you share the answer at the start of the meeting.
Your team will thank you.
Your calendar will thank you.
Your sanity will thank you.
🎧 Listen to Episode 14 of The Leadership Lab here.
And if you want to practice meeting leadership with live coaching and accountability, join us inside The Leadership Lab community. Use code PODCAST for $100 off.
Always rooting for you,
Jamie
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