Filler

A tradition at our house is to watch the All-Star game each summer. I will look forward to watching tomorrow night with my son. Over the past 10 years, we've also watched the Home Run Derby the night before, which is tonight. Initially, it was fun to watch but in recent years, it has become a long night, with round after round going long into the night. Tonight, to my dismay, the evening started with a song from the Zack Brown band. It's not that I don't like music, but it does nothing for the event except prolong the evening. Like most sporting events, the Home Run Derby adds too many unconnected activities to try to appeal to a wider audience. Perhaps it works, but it makes for a long evening. I think this entire event is due for a process change, but no one asked me. In many organizations, we try to combine meetings and activities that are not always congruent. We keep adding agenda items that are unrelated which dilutes the purpose of the meeting. Thus, desired results are not achieved and another meeting is required to achieve the original purpose. Alternatively, the meeting goes far too long to achieve the original results creating fatigue and a lack of enthusiasm for future gatherings. Meetings are important, but resist the urge to fill it with unnecessary items. Short and sweet-it can't be beat.