Creating Meeting Notes and Summaries

Taking good meeting notes is tedious. Transforming those notes into clear summaries is even harder. ChatGPT can help you create professional meeting documentation in minutes.

Types of Meeting Documentation

Different meetings need different documentation:

Meeting Type	What to Capture
Status meeting	Updates, decisions, blockers
Brainstorm	All ideas (don't filter), themes
Decision meeting	Options discussed, decision made, rationale
One-on-one	Topics covered, action items, follow-ups
Client meeting	Requirements, concerns, next steps

The Notes-to-Summary Workflow

Step 1: Capture Raw Notes

During the meeting, capture rough notes. Don't worry about formatting:

- john said project delayed 2 weeks
- needs more resources
- sarah mentioned budget concern
- decided to request extra dev
- due by friday

Step 2: Transform with ChatGPT

Meeting Summary Templates

Standard Meeting Summary

Executive Summary

For leadership or stakeholders who need the highlights:

Project Meeting Notes

Handling Different Note Sources

From Rough Handwritten Notes

From Meeting Transcript

If you have an AI transcript or recording:

From Multiple People's Notes

Specialized Meeting Summaries

Client Meeting Summary

Interview Debrief

Board or Leadership Meeting

Enhancing Meeting Notes

Adding Context

Formatting for Distribution

Quick Summary Formats

The 3-Bullet Summary

For very quick updates:

The Slack/Chat Summary

Practice Exercise

Key Takeaways

1. Capture roughly, polish later - Don't slow down the meeting trying to write perfectly
2. Use templates - Consistent format makes notes more useful
3. Match the audience - Executive summaries vs. detailed notes
4. Include context - Help future readers understand why decisions were made
5. Highlight actions - Make it clear who does what by when
6. Distribute promptly - Notes lose value if shared late

With ChatGPT, you can transform 5 minutes of rough notes into polished documentation in under 2 minutes. Next, let's focus specifically on extracting action items.