When you invite people to join a meeting, the general response might be negative. They hate the idea of sitting around a table for several hours to discuss issues and argue with each other. However, meetings are inevitable, and individuals who should be in the conversation need to be there. There are ways to avoid a negative meeting room atmosphere.
Put artwork on the walls
You will drastically improve the meeting room if you try to decorate it. Put artwork on the walls, as it is relaxing. It not only helps the room look good, but it also helps start discussions. If you invite guests or potential investors, they will feel impressed if they see that you put effort into beautifying the meeting room.
Add a piece of furniture
Meetings don’t necessarily need to be with a table and chairs. You can have it on a sofa or any other comfortable piece of furniture. When there are not a lot of people joining the meeting, you need to make it like a casual conversation among colleagues.
Allow light to come in
You want a meeting room that is easy on the eyes and relaxing. Allowing light to enter helps achieve that goal. The type and colour of the curtains that you use will affect the amount of light that comes in. You want the meeting room to feel breezy so that all attendees won’t feel like they are up for an intense discussion.
Invest in a monitor
You are doing presentations all the time, and it helps if the people joining the meeting can see the presentation. Buying a large screen will help you during the presentation. You can also buy a TV display stand if you decide to flash the visuals on a TV.
Buy colourful chairs
You can also help improve the atmosphere by using colourful chairs. They look less formal than black leather chairs and are encouraging for attendees. Don’t forget to look into how comfortable people will be when using the chairs.
Remove clutter from the meeting room
No one wants to enter a meeting room that has tons of garbage. It is a significant distraction. You want the place to look clean and organised. It will be more conducive to a meaningful conversation if there is no unwanted trash lying around.
Apart from making the meeting room more inviting, you also need to find a way to improve how you conduct the meeting. You can transform the place, but if your style when doing the meeting remains the same, it will be useless. You won’t make the employees feel comfortable each time you call a meeting.
Allow them to speak up during the discussions and let them understand that you value all ideas. They don’t need to worry that you will shut them down or you will laugh at how seemingly stupid their suggestions might be. When you make all these changes, people will feel engaged during the sessions.
