How to Establish a Meeting-Free Day Every Week

How to Establish a Meeting-Free Day Every WeekHow to Establish a Meeting-Free Day Every Week What if you could eliminate meetings from just one day a week? What about two days a week? How much more productive would you be without having to dash from one conference room to another, back to back?For Walker & Company CEO, Tristan Walker, this isnt just a dream, its his hard-fought, hard-earned reality. Sitting at the helm of a beauty industry disruptor can feel like fire fighting- everyone wants you for something and there is almost always a crisis. 12 hur days are not out of the ordinary for start-up founders, well, except for Walker.I wake up at 6 a.m. every morning. Im at my gym by 620, then Ill feed my kid before he goes to daycare with my wife. Im usually at the office by 830 a.m. and thats when I first check email, Walker told me . Then Im usually home between 6 and 630 p.m. every day. Every night I will feed and put my son to bed.Wait, huh? How does he do th at? Im not even a CEO and I can barely set those kinds of boundaries.He admits that its tough to set those kinds of boundaries , but they are essential for work-life balance . However, one boundary is vital for his success meeting-free days.I actually dont have email on my phone. I dont want to be tethered to it, so I check email when Im in the office. Usually Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays I try to take zero meetings so I can get work done, said Walker. Tuesdays and Wednesdays its usually back-to-back-to-back meetings.Packing two days full of meetings is the price he pays for the three days of relatively uninterrupted work. And while you may think that this is something only a CEO can do, think again. Establishing meeting free days is something we can all do by fiercely guarding our Google calendar and making some compromises.Before we dive into how to establish a meeting-free day, lets take a look at the benefits. According to Walker, its about minimizing distractions and exercising discipline .I was always notoriously bad at process because Ive always been a big-thinker kind of guy. In order to be most effective in my job, I have to really understand process. I try to be very disciplined and diligent as a leader for my team so that they can build something world class.Plus, it offers dedicated time for brainstorming, project execution, revisions, and perfection.Time coach and author of How to Invest Your Time Like Money , Elizabeth Grace Saunders, suggests taking the following steps to establish your own meeting-free day once a weekRemember, establishing a meeting-free day isnt elitist or selfish, its a success and survival tactic . As an employee, no matter at what level, you have to put processes and systems in place that help you do your best work . Adopting the practices of 24-7 workaholic colleagues isnt smart, nor is trying to conform to the work style of your boss. You have to create a work style that is best for you. If youre swamped and dread looking at your calendar of non-stop conference calls, consider a trying out meeting-free day.