FOCUS YOUR TIME AND MONEY Make Meetings Meatier.(LEADERS & SUCCESS)(IBD'S 10 SECRETS TO SUCCESS)

Byline: ADELIA CELLINI LINECKER

7 You're a newly minted manager and you're ready to call your first meeting. You swore you'd never drag anyone through a long, useless meeting. Need a few tips?

There are easy ways to make meetings more effective and draw the attention of busy staffers who'd rather be elsewhere.

"The main reason for meetings is to bring the heart and soul of the company to life," said Neil Lebovits, president and chief operating officer of staffing firm Agilon Finance. "So don't cover anything that doesn't need to be covered live."

To keep it light, tight and bright, Lebovits suggests that you:

** Prepare. Be clear about the meeting's objective or it'll lead to chat sessions that go on forever. Make it simple, such as "Design next year's sales strategy." Then make an outline to organize your thoughts and tell co-workers briefly and exactly what you plan to achieve.

Think of subjects that move you, and chances are they'll be interesting to others, too. "Don't get lost in all the details; you don't have to go through an entire Excel spreadsheet point after point when you can just e-mail it and workers can read it on their own," Lebovits said.