You’ve flown everyone to Barcelona. Don’t waste it on meetings.
The temptation is to pack every hour. We’re finally together! Let’s do planning! Let’s do retrospectives! Let’s do workshops!
Resist.
The value of in-person time is in the margins.
The dinner where you end up talking until midnight. The morning walk someone suggests. The afternoon when half the team decides to explore the neighborhood. The unexpected conversation that leads to a breakthrough.
None of this happens when every slot is filled.
The anti-schedule:
- One or two planned sessions per day, max
- Meals together, loosely coordinated
- Everything else: open
- No guilt about “wasting time”
Trust that smart people in proximity will create value. They don’t need an agenda to do it.
What deserves scheduled time:
- Kickoffs or big-picture strategy (once)
- Something fun and active together (not sitting in chairs)
- One meal where the whole group is together
What doesn’t:
- Anything you could do over Zoom
- Status updates
- Document reviews
- “Breakout sessions” to “maximize productivity”
You can do work anytime. You can only build relationships when you’re together.
Protect that time. Leave it unscheduled.