The Art of Meeting: Why Every Startup Needs a Sculptor

Two common meeting traps

When it comes to meetings, startups often fall into one of two traps.

The first is the most common: a group of people gather in a room or a Zoom call, they talk, ideas bounce around, and then they all disperse with no tangible outcome.

The words evaporate into thin air, leaving no trace.

Nothing gets documented, and everyone walks away with their own interpretation of what was discussed.

This is a terrible way to run a meeting.

The second (slightly better) approach involves someone taking notes.

This usually means jotting down to-dos, key points, or snippets of the conversation.

It’s a minor improvement, but still falls well short of excellence.

Notes can be disjointed, lack context, and are often forgotten or misinterpreted by those who weren’t in the room.

The sculptor

There’s a third way — a better way—particularly for startups where every meeting is an opportunity to innovate or solve a problem.

The majority of startup meetings aren’t just about exchanging information.

They’re about creating something new.

They’re about sculpting a collective vision.

And the person leading the meeting isn’t just a facilitator—they’re a sculptor.

Imagine a hunk of clay sitting in the middle of the table at the start of every meeting.

This clay represents the raw ideas, problems, and potential solutions that the group has gathered to discuss.

As the meeting progresses, the sculpture takes shape.

But here’s the catch: if everyone is sculpting in their minds, the end result will differ wildly in each person’s imagination. The misalignment that follows is almost inevitable.

Picture this: the team is trying to sculpt an elephant.

One person might imagine a massive trunk, while another envisions large, flapping ears. If these ideas remain abstract, everyone leaves the meeting with a different mental image.

But if one person — the sculptor — takes on the role of shaping the clay in real time, they start asking questions: “Should the trunk be long and curved, or short and straight? Should the ears be broad and flat, or narrow and pointed?”

As they ask these questions, they mold the clay accordingly, letting everyone in the room see the elephant take form.

The rough edges are smoothed out, the details sharpened, and by the end, everyone is looking at the same elephant. There’s no room for misinterpretation, only clarity.

The medium

Depending on the nature of the meeting, the sculptor’s medium might change.

If the meeting is about app design, they might be sketching wireframes in Figma or drawing on a whiteboard.

If the meeting is about refining a process, they might be iterating on a workflow diagram in real time.

The medium is less important than the act of sculpting itself — the continuous, visible shaping of ideas as the meeting progresses.

The sculpting approach transforms meetings from a mere exchange of information — a task that could often be handled asynchronously — into a creative act.

The meeting becomes an exciting, dynamic event where the future is literally being shaped before your eyes.

And the role of the meeting leader becomes something a little more sublime than just being a notetaker.

So next time you find yourself leading a meeting, think of yourself as a sculptor.

And if you’re in a meeting that feels disjointed or lacks direction, don’t be afraid to raise your hand and become the sculptor yourself.