Meeting notes template

Writing effective meeting notes is essential for capturing key information and action items. Here are some tips to help you write meeting notes efficiently:

• Be concise: Focus on the main points, action items, and decisions made during the meeting. Avoid unnecessary details and lengthy descriptions.

• Use bullet points: Organize your notes using bullet points or numbered lists to make them easy to scan and understand.

• Record action items: Clearly identify action items and assign them to specific individuals with clear deadlines.

• Include context: Provide brief context or background information for each agenda item to add clarity to your notes.

• Stay objective: Write in an objective tone, avoiding personal biases or opinions.

• Use templates: Consider using pre-designed templates like the Mural meeting notes template to maintain consistency and save time.

• Review and share: After the meeting, review your notes for accuracy and completeness before sharing them with the team.

Meeting minutes and meeting notes serve distinct purposes:

Meeting minutes:

• Formal record: Meeting minutes are a formal, comprehensive record of a meeting's proceedings. They include details like meeting date, attendees, action items, decisions made, and discussions.

• Approval process: Minutes are often reviewed, revised, and approved by meeting participants before they are considered final.

• Legal implications: Minutes may have legal significance and can be used as official documentation.

Meeting notes:

• Informal record: Meeting notes are more informal and focus on capturing key takeaways, action items, and essential points discussed during the meeting.

• No approval process: Meeting notes are typically not subject to approval and are meant for personal or team use.

• Simplicity and speed: Notes are quicker to write, allowing you to capture information in real-time.

• Active listening: Actively listen during the meeting to grasp important points accurately. Avoid multitasking or distractions.

• Identify key points: Focus on the meeting's main ideas and action items rather than trying to capture every single detail.

• Use shorthand and symbols: Develop a personal shorthand system or use symbols to jot down notes quickly without compromising comprehension.

• Capture decisions and action items: Ensure you clearly document decisions made during the meeting and the corresponding action items assigned to individuals.

• Follow a structure: Organize your notes with headings or sections based on the meeting agenda to make it easier to refer back to specific topics. You can easily change the template format to fit your needs, so try adding headers or sections for different parts of the meeting.

• Highlight follow-up items: Use visual cues like asterisks or bold text to mark important follow-up tasks and deadlines.

• Review and share promptly: Share the meeting notes with the participants soon after the meeting to ensure everyone is on the same page.

• Combine notes with visuals: If applicable, integrate visual elements like diagrams, charts, or sketches to enhance understanding and engagement.

• Archive and reference: Store your meeting notes in an organized manner for future reference and to track progress on action items.