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I have systematically refused to attend a single BFM for the last four years (and there have been dozens). So far there is no detectable difference between my level of "shared consciousness" and anyone else's. I like small meetings populated by the select subset of my coworkers from whom my mind can benefit.

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Good for you. Small meetings and breakout sessions are more effective than absurd BFM :). What is your ideal small size meeting, hypothetically speaking, or when does it become a crowd?

Four is my limit

Thank you for sharing that.

I have rules of thumb for scheduling meetings:

1. Don't invite managers - unless you're told to.

2. Slot 10 minutes for each non-manager.

3. Add 15 minutes for each manager.

4. Add 30 minutes each for certain people - you know who I mean.

As developers, it can be confusing for us trying to understand why managers call so many pointless meetings. Just remember Maslow's hammer: "if all you have is a hammer, every job looks like a nail."

This is a really great rule of thumb. This stems from managers wanting to play an "active" role in solution because they have been asked to "lead". It sucks. When you are brainstorming you need meetings but if you push it to thousands of people, it's just the jungle and no productivity.

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