Once upon a time, in a bustling office, there was a weekly meeting that everyone dreaded. It was notorious for its long duration and seemingly endless discussions.
One day, the office manager decided to spice things up. He entered the meeting room with a huge jar filled with colourful marbles. He announced, “Today, we’re going to make this meeting more interactive. For every unnecessary tangent or off-topic discussion, I’m going to drop a marble into this jar.”
As the meeting progressed, the marbles started piling up surprisingly quickly. It did not take long for the jar to become a colourful tower of marbles, resembling a modern art sculpture.
With each “ping” of a marble hitting the jar, people could not help but suppress laughter. It became a challenge to keep the marbles from overflowing. Even the most verbose contributors started self-regulating their comments, trying to avoid being the cause of another “marble moment.”
By the end of the meeting, the jar of marbles had become the meeting’s unofficial mascot. It served as a quirky reminder that time was precious and that staying on topic was a collective effort.
From then on, the meetings were known as the “Marble Meetings,” and they became more efficient and engaging. People realized that humour could be a powerful tool to remind them to stay focused and make the most of their time together.
And so, amid marbles and laughter, the team learned that a little fun could go a long way in making even the most dreaded meetings a bit more enjoyable.
Cheers!