Many office workers today feel like they spend more time talking about work than actually doing it. Since the pandemic, meetings have become a much bigger part of the workday, and for many employees, that shift has brought exhaustion, reduced productivity, and difficulty focusing. While meetings are essential for collaboration, frequent video calls, unclear agendas and back-to-back schedules can leave people mentally drained, with little uninterrupted time left for deep work, especially at a time when working from home or a hybrid setup has become the norm. This has led to what’s being termed ‘meeting fatigue.’DISCLAIMER: This article is based on information from the public domain and/or the experts we spoke to.According to a 2023 Forbes report, research cited by Virtira highlights the scale of the issue. In a 2021 survey, more than six out of 10 office workers said meetings had increased significantly since the start of the pandemic. According to consulting firm Vyopta, meetings were up 60% from 2020 by the following year, and by 2023, three out of four workers said meetings had either increased (46%) or stayed the same (30%). Virtira’s 2023 survey also found that 64% of workers identified meetings as their biggest source of workplace fatigue, while 47% said meetings without a clear purpose were the leading cause of “meeting fatigue.”A 2025 report by Cosmos describes meeting fatigue as a result of “online video calls” that “drain your brain in ways physical meetings never did.” Further, it added, “When you switch between a meeting, a task, another meeting, and another task, you’re not just losing time. You’re losing cognitive capacity.”But beyond productivity, what does constant meeting overload do to employees’ mental health, motivation and workplace wellbeing? We asked an expert.Understanding meeting fatigueGurleen Baruah, Organisational Psychologist at That Culture Thing, tells indianexpress.com, “Meeting fatigue is exactly what the name suggests — feeling mentally tired because of too many meetings. It’s not just the number of meetings but the way they are scheduled. Back-to-back meetings, constant screen time, and meetings without a clear purpose leave very little time for people to think, reflect, or actually get work done.”She adds, “Our brains are not designed to keep switching from one discussion to another all day. Every switch takes mental energy. Over time, this affects concentration, decision-making, creativity, and motivation. People often end the day feeling exhausted, even though they haven’t done much of the work that actually matters. The issue isn’t meetings themselves; it’s when they become constant and leave no room for focused work.”Story continues below this adReducing unnecessary meetingsClick on each question below before scheduling a meeting:❓ Why is this meeting needed?The first step is recognising that running good meetings is a skill, and most managers are never formally taught how to do it. Before scheduling a meeting, ask a few simple questions: Why is this meeting needed? What decision needs to be made?Meetings should be for solving problems and making decisions, not simply sharing information that could have been communicated in other ways. Who really needs to be there?Not everyone has to attend every meeting. I personally like Amazon’s two-pizza rule—the meeting should be small enough that two pizzas could feed everyone. Other tips include sharing the agenda in advance, ending with clear action points, and using shared documents or project management tools for updates that don’t need a discussion.Story continues below this adPreventing burnout in meeting-heavy jobsIf your role involves a lot of meetings, the first step is to be deliberate about where you spend your time. Baruah mentions, “Ask yourself which meetings are truly important and where your presence adds value. Before joining a meeting, be clear about why you are there and what outcome is expected.”Wherever possible, Baruah suggests, block time in your calendar for focused work and protect it just as you would a meeting. Blocking short breaks between meetings can help your mind reset. More importantly, don’t confuse being busy with being productive. Remember, doing meaningful work requires both collaboration and uninterrupted thinking. It’s about managing your attention, not just managing your calendar.DISCLAIMER: This article is based on information from the public domain and/or the experts we spoke to.