The first step to writing effective meeting minutes is to prepare before the meeting. Review the agenda, objectives, and previous minutes to get familiar with the topics and issues that will be covered. Also, make sure you have a reliable way to take notes, such as a laptop, tablet, or paper notebook. You may want to use a template that helps you organize your notes and includes some of the following elements: date, time, location, attendees, agenda items, and more.
Also be sure those who are absent are marked "excused" (notified facilitator of not being able to make the meeting) and those unexcused), just no shows. You may have to have a quorum for official votes and/or keep record of attendance for people to serve as board, committee members, etc.
Now, you can take notes during the meeting. You don't have to write down everything that's said, but you should focus on the main points and outcomes of each agenda item. Record who said what, who agreed or disagreed, and who was assigned to do what by when. Use abbreviations, symbols, or keywords to save time and space, but make sure you can understand them later. You may want to also use a recording device to capture the meeting audio or video, still taking your own notes as a backup.
Notetakers, ideally, should not be the facilitator or leader of the meeting! With Zoom and hybrid meetings as well as other recording devices be sure you have a policy to notify all attending the meeting is recorded. Leadership should also have a policy and procedure if an attendee or presenter does not want to be recorded. That may involve comments, or votes in writing as well as a policy that those who do not want to be recorded visually or on audio may have to leave the meeting or can not vote on issues.
Teams and other meeting apps offer transcription which, IMHO, will not replace meeting minutes, but will help transcribe the salient points easily and accurately.
One mistake to avoid is recording conversations verbatim, which can cause information overload and obscure critical takeaways.
Be sure to review and edit your notes after the meeting. Do this as soon as possible, while the information is still fresh in your mind. Check your notes for accuracy, clarity, and completeness. Additionally, compare your notes with the recording, if you got one, and with other note-takers — if there were any. Correct any errors, fill in any gaps, and delete any irrelevant information. You should also use clear language, avoiding jargon and acronyms. And utilize bullet points and lists to highlight the key points.
If at all possible take 30 minutes after the meeting to tidy up the minutes - often I would build the minutes into the agenda using a seperate color font and then have those for the next meeting to confirm attendance, votes, calls to action, etc. I woudl ask for feedback as to the process and adjust as needed but had consistent minute writing for ease, clarity and understanding by all, especially those who did not attend so they feel up to date and in the know.
After you've cleaned up everything up, format and distribute your minutes. Use a consistent and professional format that follows the template you used for taking notes. Include a title, header, and footer that indicate the name of the meeting, date, time, and page numbers. And don't forget to proofread your minutes, before sending them the meeting organizer or facilitator for approval. Once they're approved, distribute them to all the attendees and any other relevant stakeholders.
Keep any documents that were referenced in the meeting together with the notes for historical reference. You can add as an attachment or depending on the type of document, I will attach it as an image in the section of the notes that it pertains to. For example, if the group votes on a new logo or graphic, I will include that as an image in that section. If it is a contract, it will get attached and distributed with the notes.
Page numbers are is crucial! I also advise to use days of the week as well as dates and even times whenever, and as often as possible, in minutes to truly orient all readers (those who attended and those who did not) to all actions and details of conversations that are relevant to follow up and follow through.