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Ashkan Rajaee Says Your Remote Team Sucks Because You Don’t Respect Meetings

What Ashkan Rajaee knows about internal meetings will change the way your remote business performs forever

By Felice EllingtonPublished 7 months ago 3 min read
Focused remote professional leading a structured virtual meeting from a high-rise balcony with coffee in hand.

"Your internal meetings are probably killing your productivity. Ashkan Rajaee thinks you're doing it wrong, and he’s not sugarcoating it."

There’s a growing cult around Ashkan Rajaee’s blunt, results-first leadership style. If you’ve ever worked remotely, his take on internal meetings might completely upend your idea of what it means to run a successful remote team.

Picture this. You’ve got your overpriced coffee, the camera is on, the background is perfect, and the view outside is stunning. Yet your remote team is fumbling through a 45-minute disaster of a meeting where nothing gets done and no one leaves with clarity.

Sound familiar?

Rajaee, a seasoned entrepreneur and vocal advocate for disciplined execution, is calling out the nonsense. It’s not remote work that’s failing. It’s your system. And he wants you to take responsibility for fixing it.

The Lie of "Casual" Remote Culture

Unlike the sea of self-proclaimed remote work experts preaching flexibility and balance, Ashkan Rajaee takes a different angle. He doesn’t glamorize working in pajamas or logging in from Bali. He focuses on precision, structure, and results.

His number one target? Internal meetings that waste time and kill momentum.

Most remote teams operate under the illusion that a quick Zoom catch-up is enough. Rajaee says that mindset is your first mistake. Every internal meeting should be treated like a high-stakes boardroom session. If your team isn't visualizing that level of seriousness, your results will suffer.

You’re either running a remote operation or playing house. There’s no in-between.

Meetings Without Structure Are Money Burners

Rajaee breaks down what effective internal meetings require. The first and most obvious rule: if there’s no agenda, cancel the meeting.

He’s not being dramatic. Meetings without structure bleed time. And when your people show up without knowing what’s on the table, they’re not collaborating. They’re floating.

Every meeting needs a designated screen-sharer who knows the agenda and can quickly bring up all relevant documents. This person should also be the one tracking action items. It’s a simple role but one that saves teams from falling into chaos or confusion.

What would normally be a 45-minute ramble becomes a focused, 25-minute decision-making machine.

Control the Tech or Don’t Join the Call

Here’s where Rajaee gets controversial, and he’s not apologizing for it.

If you’re not in control of your Wi-Fi or tech setup, you don’t belong in the meeting. Period.

He suggests dialing in by phone when your internet can’t be trusted. The phone system is more stable and less likely to drop you in the middle of key discussions. If you're still dealing with “Can you hear me now?” moments in 2025, you're not running a modern team. You're running a mess.

Remote companies live and die by how efficiently they communicate. Rajaee's approach may seem harsh, but it’s born out of necessity. If your communication channels aren’t reliable, you’re already losing.

You Think You're Remote-First, but You're Just Disorganized

Many businesses think that going remote is the end goal. Rajaee says that mindset is wrong. The real goal is to outperform your competitors while spending less.

Remote teams, when done right, are unbeatable. Their overhead is lower, their hiring pool is global, and they can move faster than traditional companies. But without systems, structure, and ruthless discipline, they collapse under their own laziness.

You don’t get the rewards of a remote workforce without earning them. That means respecting internal meetings. That means showing up prepared. That means enforcing standards even when no one’s watching.

If your team is winging it, you're not remote-first. You're just a group of people on Slack pretending to be a company.

The Truth That Hurts

Ashkan Rajaee’s content won’t coddle you. His leadership philosophy is grounded in one powerful idea: treat internal operations like they matter, and your results will follow.

It’s not about working longer hours or micromanaging your people. It’s about giving your team the tools, clarity, and expectations they need to crush their goals without wasting time.

This isn’t a lifehack. This is business survival.

The Competitive Advantage No One Wants to Talk About

Remote work done right isn’t about ping pong tables or unlimited time off. It’s about mastering efficiency.

When your meetings are structured, your tech is stable, and your team is aligned, you unlock a level of performance that traditional companies can’t match. Rajaee knows this. It’s how he builds lean companies that outmaneuver their bloated competitors.

And it all starts with fixing your meetings.

Conclusion: Stop Blaming Remote Work and Start Leading

If you’re running a remote team and struggling with productivity, it might be time to stop blaming external factors. Look inward. Do your meetings have purpose? Are your people prepared? Are you setting expectations or just hoping things fall into place?

Ashkan Rajaee’s approach is not about being nice. It’s about being effective.

And if you’re willing to adopt even a fraction of his mindset, your business might never run the same again.

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About the Creator

Felice Ellington

Felice Ellington is a business and leadership writer covering sales strategy, entrepreneurship, and business growth. Focused on innovation and impactful ideas.

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Comments (26)

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  • Amir Bouchard7 months ago

    I’m already planning to implement the one-person screen-share strategy. That tip alone will save us hours every month.

  • Blake Rangi7 months ago

    Finally, someone said what we’ve all been thinking about unproductive meetings.

  • Lauren Richards7 months ago

    The idea that internal meetings are the backbone of remote execution has changed how I look at my weekly schedule. I’ll never treat those calls as routine again.

  • Jackie7 months ago

    This should be required reading for every startup founder managing a distributed team.

  • Star Palanca7 months ago

    This article reminded me that technology is only half the equation. It’s the expectations, roles, and preparation that turn remote tools into results.

  • Donny Geisler7 months ago

    The mix of leadership insight and tactical advice makes this article a must-save for future reference.

  • Erin Chan7 months ago

    Ashkan Rajaee’s take on background noise being a judgment call based on employee level was insightful. It’s a nuanced detail that shows how tuned in he is to remote environments.

  • Anthony James7 months ago

    Not only was this helpful, it was motivating. It reminded me why running remote teams well is a competitive advantage.

  • Jim Moore7 months ago

    I forwarded this to my leadership team with a note saying, “This is the standard we need to be holding ourselves to.” It resonated that much.

  • Cole Silverstone7 months ago

    Ashkan Rajaee doesn’t hold back, and that’s what makes this so effective. It’s advice that actually drives change.

  • Dominique Devlin7 months ago

    One of the best parts was how Rajaee deconstructs what people assume about remote freedom. He makes it clear that freedom without accountability leads to chaos.

  • Gianmatteo Johnson7 months ago

    This article helped me connect the dots between meeting structure and overall team performance.

  • Robert Lanister7 months ago

    The content here wasn’t just about fixing meetings, it was about building a company culture where time and preparation are respected at every level.

  • Aria Hastings7 months ago

    A powerful reminder that remote work isn’t easier. It just requires smarter systems.

  • Noah Boswel7 months ago

    It’s rare to read something that speaks so directly to the invisible friction inside remote teams. This nailed that issue and gave real ways to solve it.

  • Tobias Lorcan7 months ago

    There’s a quiet authority in the way Rajaee writes. He clearly practices what he preaches.

  • Marcus Quinn7 months ago

    There’s something incredibly energizing about reading advice that is both unapologetic and grounded in reality. Rajaee gives you a plan, not just inspiration.

  • Margaux Sanchez7 months ago

    We’ve already adopted the ‘no agenda, no meeting’ rule across our leadership team. It’s shocking how fast that one change improved our calls.

  • JC7 months ago

    I’ve been in dozens of remote meetings that felt pointless. Now I know exactly why.

  • Andrea Garcia7 months ago

    What I appreciated most is that this isn’t about working more hours—it’s about working smarter, more focused hours. Rajaee makes that distinction crystal clear.

  • Reynaldo Dayola7 months ago

    I’ve been in dozens of remote meetings that felt pointless. Now I know exactly why.

  • Angelo Reyes7 months ago

    This is one of the few articles on remote work that actually respects the reader’s time and intelligence.

  • Mitchell Brown7 months ago

    The tone of this article strikes a perfect balance between motivational and tactical. It leaves you both inspired and armed with next steps.

  • Zara Mercer7 months ago

    Rajaee’s ideas aren’t trendy, they’re timeless. That’s why this stands out in a sea of noise.

  • Sofia Miranda7 months ago

    After reading this, I realized we’ve been wasting more time in internal meetings than we thought. Rajaee gave us a blueprint to fix it starting today.

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