I schedule meetings in the afternoon whenever possible.

Here are a few reasons why:

• People’s mornings are sacred. It’s the foundation of their day, which is the foundation of their life. In order to achieve everything they might, their mornings ought to remain theirs.

• People tend to be a little looser in the afternoon. Chances are better they’ve finished that big stressful thing they were dreading this morning, or that they’ve gotten themselves into a groove today.

• Cortisol levels are lower, leading to more authentic interactions and more creative thoughts. With cortisol down, people expend fewer resources worrying about social status, insecurities, or perceived threats.

• As a bonus, they might be slightly fatigued. This helps people become more creative, eschewing the standard anxieties and inhibitions for a clearer, less encumbered mind.

"But limiting meetings to the afternoon risks key contributors being gone for the day. People are more reliably in the office in the morning." True, I will grant you that. Too late, and you might lose people running out. Too early, and you’ll lose people to the lunch hour.

Here's the key to success, in my experience.

Plan for your meeting to start and end somewhere squarely in that 2-4pm sweet spot. Everyone has established their rhythm for the day, they don’t have anywhere else to be, and they might be a little more comfortable being present at that moment.

That’s not a bad place to try to make something real happen with the people around you.