How to Write Meeting Notes Nobody Ignores (2-Minute Format)

Nobody reads your meeting recaps.

I know because I've sent hundreds of them. Detailed summaries. Background context. Key discussion points. Action items buried in paragraph three.

Next meeting, someone asks "Wait, what did we decide?"

The notes were there. Nobody read them.

The Format That Gets Read

MEETING: [Topic] — [Date]

DECISIONS MADE:
• [Decision 1]
• [Decision 2]

ACTION ITEMS:
• [Person] — [Task] — [Due date]
• [Person] — [Task] — [Due date]

NEXT MEETING:
[Date] — [Topic to cover]

RECORDING: [Link]

No summary. No background. No meeting description.

Why This Works

People scan for two things:

• What was decided?
• What do I need to do?

Everything else gets skipped.

The Recording Shortcut

Don't take notes during the meeting. It splits your attention and you miss things.

Record the meeting. After it ends, listen at 2x speed. Write down decisions and action items as you hear them.

5 minutes for a 30-minute meeting.

The Even Faster Way

Record the meeting. Use any transcription tool. Search the transcript for:

• "We decided"
• "Action item"
• "Next steps"
• "[Name] will"

Pull those sentences. Format them in the template.

StatusDraft does this automatically—upload the recording and it extracts decisions and action items into a shareable recap card.

When to Send

Within 30 minutes of the meeting ending.

Fast recaps get read. Next-day recaps get ignored.