Ever walk out of a meeting and think, “Well, that was a colossal waste of time.”

Multiply that by 10, and you’ve got a typical week in corporate America.

According to HBR, the average executive spends 23 hours per week in meetings.

And 50% of them are ineffective.

That’s not just annoying. That’s expensive.

Let’s say your team has 8 people in a 60-minute meeting.

Each makes $90/hour = $720

Do that weekly? That’s $37,000 a year for one recurring meeting.

Now multiply that across your org. Add the cost of low engagement, resentment, and the recovery time it takes after a bad meeting. It’s a silent killer of momentum.

The Real Issue? Not Meetings. Leadership.

At The Amplified Life Company, we teach leaders to distinguish reactive leadership (aka Below the Line) from conscious, values-aligned leadership (Above the Line).

The same principle applies to meetings.

Bad meetings are a symptom of unconscious leadership:

• No clear outcomes

• Vague ownership

• No emotional safety

• Broken or unclear agreements

• Disengagement masked as professionalism

Here’s how visionary leaders do it differently.

1. Start with an Emotional Check-In

Use emotional intelligence to humanize the space.

Let people name how they’re feeling, yes, even in “serious” meetings.

It’s not fluffy, it’s science.

Psychological safety is the foundation of high-performance teams.

2. Define the Outcome Before You Start

Ask: “What must we walk out of here having done, decided, or created?”

That’s your compass. Everything else is a detour.

3. Use “Above the Line” Prompts to Stay on Track

Pause mid-meeting to ask:

• “Are we showing up above the line right now?”

• “What don’t we see yet?”

• “What’s a possibility we haven’t considered?”

• “If we weren’t worried about being wrong, what idea would we try?”

• “What would this look like if it were simple?”

This creates real-time accountability and raises the collective frequency of the conversation.

4. Track Agreements Like Gold

Every broken agreement is a trust leak.

Use language like:

• “What’s the clear agreement here?”

• “By when?”

• “Are we all committed?”

• “Is there anything left unsaid?”

Use integrity check-ins to restore alignment when things slip.

5. Close With Reflection, Not Just Action

High-performing teams slow down to speed up.

End with:

• “What worked?”

• “What could we do better?”

• “How are we growing together?”

Make meetings a space of continuous leadership development, not just reading reports and giving boring updates.

Final Thought:

You don’t need fewer meetings.

You need more intentional, Above the Line meetings.

Meetings that:

• Align your team
• Accelerate decisions
• Build trust
• Activate ownership
• Spark innovation

If your calendar feels like a life-sucking machine, it’s time to lead differently.

Grab our free Team Meeting Template and start transforming your meetings today.

• Running at full throttle leads to less-than-optimal results over time.
• Choosing control over flow blocks collaboration, trust, and innovation.
• Defining worth by achievement means confidence collapses when results dip.

• High performance = productivity, discipline, results (often at the cost of sustainability).
• Peak performance = flow, presence, fulfillment, and results that last.

• Where am I settling?
• Where am I not fully taking responsibility?
• What am I modeling for others?
• Where am I avoiding the stairs in my health?
• Who do I need to help me?
• What is the next level of integrity or intentionality waiting for me?

• Re-evaluating sleep, nutrition, and hormone health.
• Upping the intensity of my workouts.
• Adding impact challenges like jumping and bounding.
• Revisiting what “healthy” means for this phase of life.
• Asking “Who can help me?” instead of “How can I do this alone?”

The Leadership Takeaway

“When you learn to live a life that is fully engaged, then you can perform your best and love the challenge.” – Jim Murphy

• How often do we truly use each of our senses throughout the day?
• How often do we take the time to intentionally transition from one activity to the next?
• How often are we fully engaged in the present moment of our lives?

Too many people are living as if life is just a series of checkboxes.

• Your focus deepens.
• Your creativity flows more freely.
• Your relationships feel richer.
• Your work feels more intentional.
• You end the day with more energy than you started.

“Your session and message had the rare ability to connect, challenge, and empower… in the same breath. And, pushed me to think beyond management and step into authentic leadership, with clarity, courage, and purpose.”

• You gain access to wisdom and insight you can’t Google.
• You get exposure to visionary thinkers and frameworks that shift your mindset.
• You connect with people who challenge you to level up.
• You realize what’s possible when you’re surrounded by high-performers.

• You shift from being in the weeds to seeing the big picture.
• You expand your toolbox and your network.
• You learn to lead with more clarity and less burnout.
• You get refreshed, refocused, and reminded of your why.

• You set the tone. Your growth sets the ceiling for everyone else.
• You need space to think, connect, and vision at a higher level.
• You meet peers who sharpen your edge.
• You’re not just investing in yourself, you’re investing in your team, your culture, and your legacy.