{"id":20380,"date":"2018-10-31T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-10-31T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/global2020prd.wpengine.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T14:49:19","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T14:49:19","slug":"life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In complex companies, we are connected to many teams and networks. The people we work with tell us they spend about two days per week in dismal meetings and conference calls that are usually less interesting than the coffee breaks &#8211; and <strong>50%<\/strong> of this is irrelevant.<\/p>\n<p>This means that many of us spend <strong>8 years of our career<\/strong> in unnecessary meetings and calls &#8211; and some weeks it really feels like it!<\/p>\n<div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #2b6cb0; background: #ebf8ff; padding: 16px 20px; border-radius: 4px; margin: 20px 0; font-family: 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;\">\n<div style=\"font-size: 17px; font-weight: 600; color: #2b6cb0; margin-bottom: 4px;\">\ud83d\udd0e Review Note<\/div>\n<div style=\"font-size: 15px; color: #2a4365; line-height: 1.5;\">This legacy podcast remains relevant so we kept it and updated it lightly in <strong>February 2026<\/strong><br \/>\nFor the latest thinking, see our updated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/matrix-management-training\/ \">Guide to fewer, better meetings\/<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-20380-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-dismal-meetings-useful-coffee-breaks-life-in-a-matrix1.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-dismal-meetings-useful-coffee-breaks-life-in-a-matrix1.mp3\">https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-dismal-meetings-useful-coffee-breaks-life-in-a-matrix1.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In this podcast Kevan Hall focuses on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/fewer-better-meetings-how-leaders-in-complex-organizations-reclaim-time-focus-and-decision-quality\/\">reducing the number of meetings and improving participation<\/a> in those that remain.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls &#8211; Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-20380","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","type-blog"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast - Global Integration<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls - Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls - Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Global Integration\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-17T14:49:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kevan Hall\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kevan Hall\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kevan Hall\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3ad6577af9c33612e410fbcdc3ff2a9a\"},\"headline\":\"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-17T14:49:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":140,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#organization\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/\",\"name\":\"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast - Global Integration\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-17T14:49:19+00:00\",\"description\":\"Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls - Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"www.global-integration.com\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Global Integration\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/GI_logo_hero.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/GI_logo_hero.webp\",\"width\":312,\"height\":271,\"caption\":\"Global Integration\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/uk.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/global-integration\"],\"description\":\"Global Integration are a leading global training provider specializing in matrix management, cross-functional teams, remote, virtual and hybrid working. They provide highly interactive face-to-face, virtual and online learning delivered globally\",\"email\":\"kevan@global-integation.com\",\"foundingDate\":\"1994-04-01\",\"numberOfEmployees\":{\"@type\":\"QuantitativeValue\",\"minValue\":\"11\",\"maxValue\":\"50\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3ad6577af9c33612e410fbcdc3ff2a9a\",\"name\":\"Kevan Hall\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kevan Hall\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.global-integration.com\\\/insights\\\/author\\\/kevan-hall\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast - Global Integration","description":"Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls - Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast","og_description":"Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls - Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks","og_url":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/","og_site_name":"Global Integration","article_published_time":"2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-02-17T14:49:19+00:00","author":"Kevan Hall","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kevan Hall","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/"},"author":{"name":"Kevan Hall","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3ad6577af9c33612e410fbcdc3ff2a9a"},"headline":"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast","datePublished":"2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-17T14:49:19+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/"},"wordCount":140,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#organization"},"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/","url":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/","name":"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast - Global Integration","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-17T14:49:19+00:00","description":"Many of us spend 8 years of our career in unnecessary meetings and calls - Life in a Matrix Podcast: Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/life-in-a-matrix-podcast-dismal-meetings-surprisingly-useful-coffee-breaks-episode-2\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Dismal meetings, surprisingly useful coffee breaks podcast"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/","name":"www.global-integration.com","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#organization","name":"Global Integration","url":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GI_logo_hero.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GI_logo_hero.webp","width":312,"height":271,"caption":"Global Integration"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/uk.linkedin.com\/company\/global-integration"],"description":"Global Integration are a leading global training provider specializing in matrix management, cross-functional teams, remote, virtual and hybrid working. They provide highly interactive face-to-face, virtual and online learning delivered globally","email":"kevan@global-integation.com","foundingDate":"1994-04-01","numberOfEmployees":{"@type":"QuantitativeValue","minValue":"11","maxValue":"50"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/#\/schema\/person\/3ad6577af9c33612e410fbcdc3ff2a9a","name":"Kevan Hall","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kevan Hall"},"url":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/insights\/author\/kevan-hall\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20380","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20380"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20380\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.global-integration.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20380"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}