RECIPE FOR SUCCESS:How to make the most of your meetings

Last week, I attended a Newport Beach City Council meeting that ended past midnight. Topics moved way off subject, and people rambled on and on, but what really disturbed me was witnessing the council’s disregard for our contract-bidding protocol.

The council awarded a rubbish contract to a business that was a major campaign contributor and has questionable business practices within the rubbish industry as well as the county regarding trucks and recycling reporting practices. But how would they know that since they disregarded a year’s worth of staff’s research?

The rubbish industry and other cities around the county are buzzing about the blatant conflict of interests and lunacy displayed that night. Judy Ware didn’t get the nickname of “Be Ware” Disposal for nothing, so I decided to look into the business of holding meetings, and a Google search revealed 77 million sites dealing with meeting rules alone.

At robertsrules.com, you can find the godfather of all rule books on the subject. Robert’s Rules of Order was written in 1876 by Gen. Henry M. Robert after he was asked to preside over a church meeting and realized he didn’t know how. It’s based on parliamentary procedure and is now in its 10th revised edition.

Mycommittee.com is an easy-to-use Committee Management System that helps you manage your committee through online agendas and minutes.

Effectivemeetings.com will give you all the meeting basics and even has an online “meeting guru” who can lead you through those difficult issues and questions.

There are literally millions of sites and books available, so why are we not paying attention and still sitting through inefficient meetings when help is a mouse-click away?

As chairman of the Santa Ana Heights Redevelopment Project Advisory Committee, I attend and hold all sorts of meetings, so here are some of my ingredients for a successful meeting.

Rule 1: Meetings take on the personality of the person in charge. Set boundaries and manage the meeting and the people around you.

Rule 2: Videotape is forever. If your meeting is taped or televised, comb your hair, look refreshed and most of all pay attention and try not to say anything stupid. I can only imagine what a sharp campaign consultant will do in the next election cycle with footage from any late-night city council meeting. Council members yawning, looking disinterested and saying all sorts of inane things are fun to replay on your TiVo.

Rule 3: Follow the rules. Rules must apply to everyone, not a random few — and you can’t make them up as you go along.

Rule 4: Manage repeaters. When someone starts repeating themselves, thank them and politely move on. Think of yourself as a talk show host, moving the discussion along. Keep it brief and to the point.

Rule 5: Be prepared. Know your subject matter. There’s no shame in reading your comments or reports, but read them at home first to make sure you make sense and are not rambling.

Rule 6: Set a realistic agenda, putting the most vital issues first so board members are fresh and alert when making decisions on important matters. Don’t overload your agenda either. No one likes long meetings.

Rule 7: Never be rude to the public. There’s a difference between strong and firm and just being rude.

Your behavior matters, especially if you are an elected official. Maybe someone should send that memo around City Hall.