Transform Your Recurring Meetings From Routine to Memorable

We’ve all been there.

Another Monday team sync. The same agenda template. The same five people doing 80% of the talking. Someone’s multitasking on email. Someone else is muted and mysteriously “having camera issues.”

Recurring meetings are supposed to be the heartbeat of a team. But too often, they turn into white noise. Rote. Predictable. Forgettable.

Here’s the thing: every recurring meeting is an opportunity — to engage, to connect, to build culture. And the leaders who intentionally design these touchpoints don’t just run better meetings. They build stronger, more resilient teams.

The Pain Point: Rote Meetings = Lost Opportunity

Harvard Business Review found that 71% of managers believe their meetings are “unproductive and inefficient.” (HBR, “Stop the Meeting Madness”).

Why? Because recurring meetings slip into autopilot. They stop feeling like meaningful touchpoints and start feeling like obligations. The result is disengagement, missed opportunities for connection, and a creeping sense that meetings are a time sink.

But with just a few intentional tweaks, you can turn the same 30 minutes from draining to energizing.

Small Changes, Big Impact

The magic is in the margins. You don’t need to blow up your agenda or add another hour to the calendar. Instead, layer in small, intentional practices that transform how people experience the meeting.

• Icebreakers that spark energy
  Five minutes of laughter can shift the entire vibe of a meeting. Quick prompts like, “What was your childhood dream job?” or “What’s the best meal you’ve had this year?” help people connect beyond their job titles.
  
  
• Celebrating small wins
  A “Win Wednesday” ritual or simple round of shoutouts at the end of the week reminds people their contributions matter. Recognition fuels engagement more than any quarterly performance review ever will. Check out Bucketlist, Bonusly, or HeyTaco!
  
  
• Interactive prompts that spark creativity
  Instead of staring at a blank screen during brainstorming, give the team a playful challenge: “What’s the worst idea we could possibly come up with?” Laughter lowers barriers and gets the best ideas flowing.

These little adjustments don’t disrupt productivity. They amplify it.

My Own “Aha” Moment

A few years ago, before diving into the numbers of a boring budget meeting, I opened with a simple icebreaker: “What was your first job?”

The answers ranged from babysitting to Taco Bell to “I once dressed up as a mall Easter Bunny.” Within minutes, people were laughing, connecting, and actually leaning in.

The surprising part? The budget discussion that followed was sharper and more collaborative than usual. That silly five-minute moment transformed the whole freaking meeting.

Making Fun & Connection Scalable

Here’s the challenge: most managers don’t have the time (or brain space) to invent fresh ways to keep their recurring meetings engaging. That’s where tools like Confetti’s Engagement Suite come in.

Think of it as a bundled subscription of repeatable, manager-friendly resources designed for hybrid work. It’s culture building, but on autopilot:

• Workshops → Structured, manager-led sessions on topics like feedback, skill-building, or team dynamics. 
• Workflows → Cadence-driven routines for things like weekly check-ins, recognition flows, or pulse surveys.
• Playbooks → Strategic frameworks to guide bigger initiatives like onboarding or change management.
• Quick Plays → Fast energizers, icebreakers, and creative resets that fit neatly into a 5-minute slot.
• Practice Labs → Micro-learning and skills modules that help managers (and their teams) get better, week by week.

The result? Connection becomes consistent and scalable. 

Tips for Seamless Integration

If you’re worried about “adding more” to an already packed meeting, here’s the good news: you don’t have to.

• Keep it short. Two to five minutes is all it takes to set the tone.
  
• Be consistent. A small ritual done weekly is more powerful than a big splash done once.
  
• Tie it back. Use fun to fuel purpose. A quick laugh or story primes people to bring their best energy to the work that follows.

Starter Ideas You Can Steal

Want to try it this week? Here are three quick ideas pulled straight from Confetti’s Meeting Kits:

• The Would-You-Rather Warm-Up: Would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses? (Yes, it will spark debate. Yes, that’s the point.)
  
• Dream Job Throwback: What did you want to be when you grew up? You’ll discover your finance director once dreamed of being a dolphin trainer.
  
• High/Low Sharing: Have each person share one high and one low from the past week. Fast, simple, and grounding.

Why It Matters

Leaders often focus on big milestones — the launches, the offsites, the annual retreats. But culture isn’t built in bursts. It’s built in the ordinary, recurring moments that make up most of the workweek.

The most effective leaders design every touchpoint intentionally. Even the ones that “just happen every week.”

Because a meeting can be more than a meeting. It can be a micro-moment of connection, recognition, and energy that ripples far beyond the agenda.

And with tools like Confetti, it’s never been easier to make those moments happen.

Closing Reminder

Recurring meetings are inevitable. The choice is whether they’ll be routine — or memorable.

As a leader, every meeting is a chance to build culture. The question is: are you using it?