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The Meetings Field Manual, paperback cover

Meetings

The Meetings Field Manual

20 Meeting Situations, Coloring Plates, and Tools for Fewer, Better Meetings

By Jon R. Orozco

Turn a vague meeting into a session with a purpose, an intended result, and next actions with owners and dates.

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  • Paperback
  • 118 pages
  • 7 x 10 in
  • Published October 18, 2026
  • ISBN-13 979-8161681374
Buying for a team? Talk to Verk Vibe about bulk copies or a facilitated session.

Who this is for

Anyone who runs or sits in too many meetings.

The calendar is full. People discuss the work, leave without clear actions, and revisit the same questions next week.

This paperback includes 20 practice situations, reflective coloring plates, worked debriefs, and practical tools.

Why this book exists

An hour together needs a job to do. This manual helps you decide when to meet, prepare the room, and capture what happens next before everyone leaves.

What you’ll practice

  1. 01Why Are We Here?

    Before you fix a meeting, ask what job it is doing. Most are doing none. Some are trying to do four at once.

  2. 02Run the Hour

    A good weekly meeting has five stops, in order. Skip a stop and the hour leaks.

  3. 03Make It Stick

    A decision nobody wrote down is only a conversation. This section is the paper trail that saves you from "I thought we agreed."

  4. 04Fewer, Better

    Fewer meetings is not a hack. It comes from knowing where each topic belongs and writing the rest down.

Try a sample situation from the book

The invite with no agenda

At 4:50 on a Friday, an invite lands for "Sync." No goal, no agenda, twelve guests. You accept because declining feels rude, then spend Monday's hour wondering what you were invited to do.

Check what a good invite should say.

  1. Why we are meeting, in one line.
  2. The decision or result we need by the end.
  3. Who owns that decision.
  4. What to read before we start.
  5. When we stop, and what gets cut if time runs short.
Make your call, then read the field note

No agenda, no meeting. An invite is a small contract: here is the job, here is who does it, here is when we stop.

All five lines belong on a good invite. The first two matter most: why we are meeting, and the result we need.

The stop time is the one people skip. It protects everyone's afternoon.

An invite with none of these is a request for your time with no plan. Ask for the goal before you accept.

Try this next: Add a purpose line to the next invite you send, or ask for one on the next invite you get.

Practice with fictional details. This excerpt offers general education, not legal, financial, or clinical advice. Use approved workplace processes and qualified support for real cases.

Tools you can return to

  • Your meeting reset plan
  • Meeting audit
  • The meeting checklist
  • Does this need a meeting?
  • Decision capture card
  • Decision log
  • Tell the organizer what would help
  • Meeting bingo
  • Twelve weeks of better meetings
  • Action tracker
  • The five-part system check
  • Pre-read one-pager
  • Match topics to rhythms
  • Where my week goes
  • Meeting debrief
  • Phrases worth keeping handy

Put the practice to work

Choose one situation that resembles the work you face. Make your call, compare it with the worked example, and identify what you would change. Take one useful move into your next assignment, conversation, or team discussion.

Read: Five lines that make a meeting invite earn its place →Discuss a team learning session →

A book supports practice. For an active workplace issue, follow your organization’s process and seek appropriate professional guidance.

Also in the Operator Field Manuals

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Write It Down

Turn vague employee notes into factual records with context, the employee’s account, and a clear follow-up.

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The Decision Field Manual

Move a stalled decision toward a clear call: name its owner, weigh the stakes, and record the reasons and next actions.

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The Delegation Field Manual

Give delegated work an owner, a clear outcome, and decision boundaries so every question does not have to return to you.

Keep exploring

Write It Down

Turn vague employee notes into factual records with context, the employee’s account, and a clear follow-up.

Solo HR

Move competing requests out of your head and into a visible case queue with priorities, owners, and next steps.

Promoted Over Your Peers

Move from coworker to supervisor with clear boundaries, consistent work decisions, and conversations you have practiced.