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“Okay. I’ll focus, pay attention and remember all of this.” most of us plan ahead of a meeting. But right after the meeting ends, some of us just clean up and forget most of the details.

After all, active listening and taking notes at the same time is no picnic. That’s probably why many of us don’t take notes at all, choosing instead to just hear it. Even if you take notes, it’s easy to write down the least important things and even scribble at the end.

Meeting notes are way more important than we think. They help us remember more details about the meetings and the people attending them. You can also increase your work output and improve your organization with the notes.

Whether it’s a big brainstorming session, an interview with a client, or regular meetings with colleagues, meeting notes play an important role in recording the discussion for future reference.

We’re going to break down some actionable tips to help you write better meeting notes. Let’s dive in!

Tip #1. Start with the basics of the story

Since you’re jotting down the key points, it seems like a good idea to start with the most basic and set the context, right? That way, not only will you remember what that meeting was about, but you’ll understand what to do after it’s over.

Record all the details about the meeting, including:

• date, time and location
• The purpose of the meeting
• Who attended the session?
• The results you want
• Measures and next steps
• deadlines

These points may be too obvious to you, but they are often overlooked. This is also crucial for people who did not attend the meeting.

Tip #2. Write down what happened in each segment of the meeting and keep it as a timeline

This is an essential part of writing meeting notes. You must write down every important point that happened during the meeting.

For example, if you talked about a new project during your meeting, it’s good to write down all the details of that project from start to finish. You can also contribute your personal thoughts and opinions about this project.

Another example is if someone brings up something that needs to be followed up later, be sure to write their name up to that point. This allows you to remind yourself or others when it’s time to follow up on those decisions or review them later.

Tip #3. Use simple language and keep it short

Meeting notes should be easy to read and understand. It is not a long document but a summary of all the critical points of the meeting.

If the notes look messy, disorganized, and unclear at first glance, you won’t get much use out of them.

Because of this, it’s worth noting that plain language is always best for writing meeting notes. You should not use too many long words or complicated sentence structures that will only confuse you and others when reviewing your notes.

Bullet points and keywords can help you summarize your notes and make your notes shorter but still comprehensive.

You can also use shorthand, symbols, acronyms, or abbreviations to quickly incorporate common phrases or ideas into the paper. Don’t forget to check them later so you always remember what these acronyms mean.

Tip #4. Don’t write down everything that is said

Although it’s important to remember what was said during the meeting, you don’t have to write down every word. First, whether it’s from a speaker or an explainer video shown in the meeting, it’s difficult to write at the pace someone is speaking. Second, it’s just a waste of time and energy.

In other words, capturing every word can create confusion and make your notes very long and difficult to understand. Meetings consist of many conversations, but that doesn’t mean that every word of it is necessary for notes.

Write only the main points of what was discussed. Then you can use your judgment to decide which are the most important insights and which are not.

If you find it much easier to glean the critical post-meeting insights from the entire conversation, make sure you don’t miss a thing. With some transcription tools, you can record all the discussions in the meeting. Then you can quickly filter the normal conversation from the main points and action points at a glance.

Or now that remote work has become a new norm for some of us and you still rely on virtual meetings, many video conferencing software also offer built-in recording functionality. You can use them to record any conversations that take place during the meeting.

Tip #5. Use a pre-designed note template

Using pre-designed note templates can save you time because you don’t have to do any preparation or formatting on the go. It also makes your notes more organized and structured.

Whether you or someone else in the organization takes notes, all notes have the same consistent structure and format so everyone on the team understands what information to expect.

Tip #6. Find the note-taking method that works for you

Taking meeting notes might just seem like writing down the important points, word for word. If you want to jot down all the important words, there are some methods you can follow.

There is no one-size-fits-all way to write effective meeting notes. Everyone has their own learning style — which means everyone takes meeting notes differently. Therefore, figuring out how to take notes efficiently is important.

Here are some standard note-taking methods.

The outline method

The point of this method is to take notes without overwhelming yourself, so you can still focus fully on the meeting while having a good record of it for reference. Then you pick four or five key points and write deeper sub-points.

Source: GoodNotes blog

The Cornell Method

There are usually three columns of notes; A larger column on the right (your actual notes) is used to highlight key ideas, while a smaller one (called “Keyword”) on the left breaks down the details of the key ideas. The last column, usually at the bottom, is for the summary.

Source: The Cornell Daily

mind mapping method

This method serves as a visual guide to how each topic relates to one another. You can start with broad general ideas and add sub-concepts as the course progresses or as you review these branches.

Source: ZHAW

Flow Notes method

This method can be a good choice if you want to write a meeting note really quickly and save time on reviewing. First, you jot down topics, then start drawing arrows and creating doodles, charts, and graphs to get a general idea.

Source: Routine

Method of writing on slides

This is for people who don’t feel like taking extensive notes. If your meeting uses a presentation, ask the presenter if they could share the file so you can download it online, print it out, and start writing. If it’s a presentation video, you may still need to create a synopsis of it.

Tip #7. Always return to the notes

Immediately after the meeting, it’s always best to review your notes while the whole topic is fresh in your mind. You can then correct any typos or errors, fill in gaps, and add additional information if necessary.

Reviewing your meeting notes can also help make them more comprehensive and organized, making them easier to keep.

Tip #8. Use an accessible digital platform to share the notes

The best way to organize your meeting notes is to create a central area where all your team members have access to the notes. That way everyone is on the same page and no one is left behind.

Keeping the meeting notes on an accessible platform also shows that you care about open communication and keeping everyone informed.

If someone misses the meeting, they can still catch up by reading the notes. If you forgot points, your team members can easily add them to the follow-up notes.

If you use laptops to take notes, now you can use writing tools that help you write faster and more accurately. Thanks to the internet

Writing tools like Grammarly or Hemmingway App provide spelling, punctuation, and grammar checks. Meanwhile, tools like Evernote and Beenote allow you to create, organize, and manage notes digitally.

Choose tools that meet your needs and suit your tastes and budget.

Wrap up

Active note-taking during meetings can help you focus and better understand the main concepts of the topic at hand. If you have been chosen to be your meeting’s sacred scribe, you must understand the ins and outs of writing and share the notes with your team.

In fact, we can say that with good meeting minutes, organizations get a return on the investment of all the meeting time they conduct. After all, an organization that can create and maintain records of all of its strategies and decisions would have a much easier time learning from the past to make better, faster decisions.

author

Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, an award-winning explainer video company. He helps businesses increase conversion rates, close more sales, and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).

Twitter: @Breadnbeyond

E-mail: [email protected]

LinkedIn: Andre Oentoro