How to prepare for a 1:1 meeting in 10 minutes
Author: Ján Káčer
Co-founder and CTO at VESTBERRY (May 2017–January 2023).
Ten minutes before your next 1:1: check what you promised, choose two questions, and identify where you can help. Bring these notes, then ask what your direct report wants to discuss.
For managers preparing for a regular 1:1. Your notes are a starting point; change the plan when your direct report brings up something more important.
The five-step, ten-minute routine
Use ten minutes as a preparation limit, not a target you have to meet. Open the conversation with “What would make this conversation useful for you today?” and make room for the answer.
Copy this into your notes
Five prompts for your next 1:1. Copy them into the notes app you already use and add only what matters.
- What would make this conversation worthwhile for them?
- What did I promise? What did they promise? What remains unresolved?
- Which concrete event or repeated pattern is worth discussing?
- Which two neutral questions will help me understand their context?
- What might I need to clarify, unblock, delegate, protect, or follow up on?
After the meeting, record who agreed to do what and when you will check back. Keep your notes somewhere your organization permits.
Worked example
This example is fictional. It does not describe a real employee or customer.
A manager is getting ready for a weekly 1:1 with an engineer. A migration is running late, and last week the engineer asked for help with a dependency on the Platform team.
- Purpose
- Understand the dependency and agree on useful manager support.
- What did we agree to do?
- I promised to get an answer from Platform; they promised to revise the rollout date.
- What changed since last time?
- The Platform answer arrived Tuesday; the rollout date remains unchanged in the plan.
- Questions
- What changed after Tuesday? What support would make the next step easier?
- Where can I help?
- Offer to resolve ownership with Platform, but confirm that this is the actual blocker first.
An unchanged date does not tell us why the work has stalled. The manager has questions to ask before deciding what help is needed.
In the first meeting: agree on the next step
The engineer explains that Platform replied, but no one knows who should take the next step. The manager agrees to settle that by Friday. The engineer will then update the rollout plan. These are the two commitments they record after the meeting.
A week later: check what happened
Platform confirmed an owner on Friday. The engineer updated the rollout plan on Monday. At the next 1:1, the manager asks whether the dependency is resolved and what support is needed next. They can now discuss the next step instead of repeating the same status questions.
Common preparation mistakes
- Writing a complete status report instead of choosing what deserves conversation time.
- Listing only the employee’s commitments and forgetting the manager’s own promises.
- Turning sparse notes into a diagnosis of emotion, intent, health, motivation, or performance.
- Arriving with a fixed verdict instead of questions that allow new context to change the plan.
- Filling every minute and leaving no room for the direct report to shape the agenda.
Evidence and privacy boundaries
- Use only work context you are entitled to access and that is relevant to the conversation.
- Separate confirmed facts from interpretations, and make uncertainty visible in your questions.
- Do not use preparation as employee scoring, covert monitoring, or an unofficial performance review.
- Keep sensitive notes proportionate, correctable, and subject to your organization’s retention and privacy rules.
Pick up where you left off
ModoPersona brings back the commitments and details you have confirmed, ready for your next 1:1. Try it across two meetings with the same person. Your first 14 days are free.