5 Things to Do in Boring Meetings That Aren't Checking Your Phone
You're in the meeting. You've been in the meeting for 47 minutes. The meeting was supposed to be 30 minutes. The meeting had no agenda. You could have received this information via email.
Your phone is right there.
You know you shouldn't. You've made eye contact with your screen twice already. And yet here you are, deciding between a LinkedIn notification and the crushing void of another update on Q2 pipeline.
There is a better way. And it doesn't involve pretending to take notes while actually texting.
Here are 5 things to do in boring meetings that keep your brain engaged, your hands occupied, and your reputation intact.
1. Squeeze Putty Under the Table
This is the professional's secret weapon. A small tin of stress putty fits in your palm, can't be seen on camera, makes no noise, and gives your hands exactly the kind of continuous sensory input that keeps your brain from wandering into full-on dissociation.
The Brain Worm and Blood of Your Enemies are both camera-safe. Nobody on the call can see what's happening below your desk. You'll look more focused, not less, because your hands are occupied and your face can stay pointed at the screen.
This is what self-regulation looks like when it's working. It's also what "keeps hands occupied" looks like when you're 40 minutes into a status update that has nothing to do with your team. Check the best fidgets for Zoom meetings for options that work in every format.
2. Take Actual Notes — By Hand
Not typed. Handwritten. There's a reason this still works: handwriting forces you to process and synthesize in real time. You can't transcribe fast enough to write everything down, so your brain automatically filters for what matters.
The side effect: you will actually remember something from this meeting. Wild concept.
Bonus: it looks like you're engaged. You have a notebook and a pen. You are nodding. You are a professional.
3. Doodle a Mind Map of What's Being Said
This is not a distraction technique. It's a processing technique. Doodling connected shapes, boxes, and arrows while someone talks keeps your visual cortex occupied at a low level, which actually helps with attention and retention compared to staring blankly at a grid of faces.
You don't have to share it. You don't have to make it pretty. Just let your pen move.
4. Do Isometric Exercises Nobody Can See
Press your palms together under the table. Hard. Hold for 10 seconds. Release. Repeat.
You can also press your feet flat against the floor with deliberate downward pressure, or clench and release your thighs. These micro-movements provide proprioceptive input — the kind of deep pressure stimulation that helps some brains regulate better than fidgeting alone.
This is entirely invisible. You will look serene. You are not serene. You are surviving.
5. Write Down One Question You'd Ask If You Had to Speak
Force yourself to stay just engaged enough to formulate a question. You don't have to ask it. Just have it ready. This is a low-stakes accountability trick: it keeps you scanning the conversation for meaning, which is more than most people in this meeting are doing.
And if the meeting becomes the kind where you actually need to contribute, you'll have something real to say. Which is how you get a reputation for being sharp in meetings without doing much extra work.
The Thing About Phone Checking
Nobody in this meeting thinks you're checking important work messages. They know what you're doing. The problem isn't that it's rude (though it is). The problem is that it signals exactly the kind of disengagement that follows you into performance reviews and team dynamics.
The fix isn't discipline. It's giving your brain and your hands something to do that keeps you present enough to function.
A tin of putty in your desk drawer costs $13. It outlasts a bad quarter. It doesn't notify you. And it will not accidentally like a photo from 2019 during a client call.
Meeting fatigue is real. Handle it like a professional who has figured something out that most people haven't yet.