How to suggest making a meeting async
Specific language for proposing that a meeting become a written or recorded async exchange — without sounding like you are trying to get out of work.
Someone has proposed a meeting. You can see, from the agenda, that the meeting could be handled async — written updates, a shared document, maybe a recorded video walkthrough — saving everyone an hour. You know this. The organizer probably also knows this on some level. But suggesting an async alternative feels like you are being difficult, like you are trying to avoid the meeting, like you are not a team player. So the default is to just accept and let the meeting happen. Suggesting async is a skill. Done well, it is welcomed — most people do not love unnecessary meetings either, and they appreciate the colleague who proposes a better way. Done badly, it lands as 'I do not want to come.' The difference is in the framing.
Here is how to suggest making a meeting async, in language that lands well.
Frame it as making the meeting better, not avoiding it
The framing matters more than the substance. If you say 'this could be an email,' you sound dismissive. If you say 'I think this might be more effective async — here is why,' you sound thoughtful. Lead with concern for the outcome, not for your own time. People respond well to ideas that improve the work and resist ideas that seem to optimize for the proposer's convenience. Frame accordingly.
Propose a specific async alternative
Do not just say 'could this be async?' — propose what async would look like. 'What if we used a shared doc — everyone adds their input by Wednesday, and we use the meeting time only if there are unresolved questions?' The specific alternative is much easier to evaluate than the abstract suggestion. People can imagine the alternative and assess whether it would work. Vague proposals get dismissed; concrete ones get considered.
Acknowledge the parts that genuinely need to be sync
Some meetings have both async-able and sync-only parts. Acknowledge this. 'I think the status piece could be in writing, but the discussion of the trade-off probably needs to happen live.' This shows you are not just trying to eliminate the meeting — you are trying to design it well. Hybrid proposals (async first, short sync after) are often the right answer, and they land better than all-or-nothing pitches.
Offer to set up the async piece yourself
If you propose async, offer to do the setup work. Create the shared doc. Write the prompt. Send the kickoff message. This signals that you are not trying to push work onto others — you are trying to redistribute it more efficiently. The willingness to do the setup work is what distinguishes a real proposal from a complaint about meeting culture.
Accept gracefully if the answer is no
Sometimes the organizer will say no. Maybe they have reasons you do not know about. Maybe they just prefer meetings. Either way, accept gracefully and attend. You have planted a seed for next time. Pushing back twice on the same meeting will land badly even if your case is right. The long game is normalizing async-first thinking on the team, and that happens through repeated low-friction proposals, not through fights over individual meetings.
Should this be a meeting? Probably not.
Meeting BS Detector analyzes any meeting against red flags — vague purposes, missing agendas, info-sharing disguised as collaboration — and produces a verdict with confidence score. It also writes the script for suggesting an async alternative without sounding difficult.