MEETING FATIGUE IN THE CHURCH AND WORKPLACE: UNDERSTANDING IT AND OVERCOMING IT

Meeting fatigue is a growing phenomenon in modern culture, as meetings have become the default method for communication, planning, and decision-making—both in the church and in the workplace. This tendency has escalated during the Covid epidemic. Yet the very tool meant to bring people together can also drain energy, diminish creativity, and slow down productivity.

Meeting fatigue isn’t just about feeling tired. It’s a genuine state of mental exhaustion caused by too many meetings, poorly structured meetings, or meetings with no clear purpose. And it is affecting pastors, leaders, volunteers, employees, and entire teams across the world.

What Is Meeting Fatigue?

Meeting fatigue is the physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion that accumulates when individuals are expected to:

• Attend frequent meetings
• Sit through long meetings
• Participating in poorly planned or unnecessary meetings
• Continuously switch between tasks and conversations
• Engage without time for reflection or rest – I believe that this is one of the most dangerous results in the church as the attendees are showered with new revelations and challenges to change but they have not time to internalize or adapt as the next meeting is already demanding their attention.

In both ministry and business settings, people often feel obligated to show up—even when the gathering accomplishes little.

Why It Happens in the Workplace

1. Too many meetings – Many teams live in a constant state of interruption. People are pulled into meetings all day and expected to do their work afterward. This results not only in meeting fatigue but also in burn out as people now must work after hours to catch up and deliver the work expected from them. The greater spin off of this lifestyle is that more and more meetings are conducted after hours and the family life is invaded as it is expected of the employee to be available after hours as well,
2. Lack of purpose or agenda – When meetings do not have clear goals, they waste valuable time and create frustration.
3. Digital overload – With virtual meetings on Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams, people face screen fatigue, eye strain, and reduced attention span.
4. Unnecessary attendance – Employees are often invited “just in case” someone needs them, leading to wasted hours.

Why It Happens in the Church

1. The demand for multiple weekly meetings – Leadership meetings, intercession meetings, planning meetings, departmental meetings, training meetings, small groups—sometimes all in the same week. You find yourself in the conundrum of meetings on a daily basis in ministry that you are obligated to attend that leaves you drained and in a state of overload.
2. Volunteers burns out due to lack of helpers or supporters and also work overload. – Volunteers who work full-time jobs are often called into evening meetings, leaving them drained with no time for family life and home responsibilities.
3. Lack of delegation where leaders over manage the volunteers or want to do all the work themselves. – When a few people carry responsibility, they get overloaded with meeting-centric duties.
4. Emotional engagement – Ministry is deeply relational and spiritual. This means every meeting carries a weight of care, compassion, and decision-making that drains the soul faster.

The Impact of Meeting Fatigue

At Work:

• Lower productivity
• Decrease in creativity and innovation
• Poor decision-making
• Stress, frustration, and disengagement
• Higher turnover drops

In the Church:

• Spiritual exhaustion
• Lack of joy
• Decreased involvement
• Strained relationships
• Leaders and members who feel disconnected from the actual mission

When people are tired of meetings, they slowly become tired of the assignment itself and become negative.

How to Overcome Meeting Fatigue

Here are practical and spiritual steps that benefit both churches and workplaces:

1. Have fewer meetings

Not everything requires a gathering. Many updates can happen via email, group messages, or written communication.

Before scheduling anything, leaders should ask:

“Is this meeting necessary?”

2. Set clear agendas and timelines

• Start on time
• End on time
• Stick to the agenda
• Avoid unnecessary conversations

People feel respected and energized when a meeting is structured.

3. Shorten meetings

A focused 30-minute meeting is often more productive than a slow, unfocused hour.

4. Reduce mandatory attendance

Invite only the people who genuinely need to be there.

This frees others to focus on their priorities.

5. Use hybrid communication

Some things are better handled through:

• Voice notes
• Shared documents
• Quick check-ins
• Project management platforms (e.g., MS Project, Trello, Asana, etc)

6. Create meeting-free zones

Workplaces can designate certain days or hours as meeting-free.

Churches can designate certain evenings to protect family time.

7. Prioritize rest and renewal

This is especially important in ministry.

Jesus frequently withdrew to rest, pray, and recharge.

Mark 1:35 NKJV

(35)  Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.

If the Son of God needed rest, so do we.

Furthermore we need to learn also how to operate and function from a position of rest in the Lord. I encourage you to listen to the audio.

8. Return to purpose

Whether in the church or workplace, the key question is:

“Is this meeting moving us toward our mission?”

If the answer is no, the meeting may not be necessary.

A Healthier Future for Churches and Workplaces

Meeting fatigue is not a sign of laziness—it’s a sign of overload. When churches and workplaces restructure how they gather, people regain:

• Energy
• Creativity
• Joy
• Purpose
• Healthy relationships

Meetings should be tools, not burdens. They should bring clarity, not confusion.

They should build people, not break them.

By approaching meetings with intentionality and care, leaders can create environments where people flourish rather than fade.

I want to encourage you to become a voice of reason in this madness both in the marketplace and in the church and ministry.

Great grace and peace to you.