How to make meeting notes with Google Calendar and Google Docs

Illustration: Andy Wolber/TechRepublic

We've been capable to connect files from Google Drive to Google Calendar events for a while. I often make a Google Doc for gathering notes, connect it to a Calendar lawsuit and stock it with the gathering participants. The shared Google Doc provides participants a grounds of the discussion. And the nexus from the Calendar lawsuit to the Doc helps radical entree the notes  not lone from Google Drive, but besides wrong Google Calendar.

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While the process utilized to instrumentality several steps, Google streamlined the series needed to create, stock and connect gathering notes successful precocious 2021. Now, arsenic elaborate below, a gathering organizer whitethorn make a caller Google Doc for gathering notes either from wrong Google Calendar lawsuit details oregon from wrong a Google Doc. Either way, the Google Docs gathering notes tin beryllium connected to your Calendar lawsuit and shared with participants.

(Note: Make definite to usage a desktop-class browser and beryllium signed successful to your Google relationship arsenic you travel the steps below. Additionally, to adhd a caller gathering notes Google Doc, you'll request to either beryllium the gathering organizer oregon person support to modify the Calendar lawsuit details.)

How to make gathering notes with a Google Calendar lawsuit

1. Create a caller Google Calendar lawsuit with the https://cal.new link successful your browser.
2. Edit each lawsuit details (e.g., title, location, time, etc.) and adhd guests.
3. Select the Create gathering notes spot successful the notes country (Figure A). 

Figure A



Select "Create gathering notes" to adhd a caller Google Doc connected to your Calendar event.

4. Select Save. This saves your event, sends invitations and shares entree to the Google Doc attached to your lawsuit with your guests.
5. From your Google Calendar, prime the lawsuit to show details including the nexus to the gathering notes Google Doc. Select the attached Google Doc (e.g., the record adjacent to the paperclip icon) to unfastened it (Figure B).

Figure B



To entree existing notes from Google Calendar, unfastened your lawsuit and prime the connected Google Doc.

By default, gathering notes created with this method are titled "Notes" followed by the lawsuit title. 

How to adhd (or access) gathering notes for an existing lawsuit

1. Open Google Calendar successful your browser.
2. Select the event.
3. Select the "Take gathering notes" nexus (Figure C) that displays erstwhile nary gathering notes are yet associated with an event. This creates a caller gathering enactment successful Google Docs for the event.

Figure C

If nary gathering notes beryllium yet, prime Take gathering notes from wrong the lawsuit details. (You'll request to beryllium the gathering organizer oregon person the quality to edit lawsuit details successful bid to bash this.)

Otherwise, if gathering notes already exist, prime the attached Google Doc to unfastened it.

As above, gathering notes created with this method are titled "Notes" followed by the lawsuit title. 

How to make gathering notes from a Google Doc

1. Create oregon unfastened a Google Doc.
2. Type @ successful the document. A database of imaginable items to insert should display, including contacts, files, dates and calendar events.

Figure D



To crook a Google Doc into gathering notes, benignant @ to show items to insert, past hunt and prime your lawsuit from the list.

3. You whitethorn past either prime a displayed calendar lawsuit (e.g., scroll down and prime it) oregon benignant a fewer much characters to search. Once your desired calendar lawsuit displays, prime it (Figure D).
4. If nary gathering notes are yet associated with the selected Calendar event, a tiny punctual volition show "[tab] to insert gathering notes" to the close of the inserted astute spot with your lawsuit rubric (Figure E). On your keyboard, property the tab cardinal and your Doc volition automatically adhd respective gathering related details and formatting (e.g., a nexus to the event, a database of attendees, on with notes and enactment point sections).

Figure E



After you've selected your event, property the tab cardinal to insert gathering notes. This applies the gathering notes template to your Doc, which adds the lawsuit date, rubric and attendee list, among different changes.

5. To the close of the assemblage of the document—where comments display—a punctual volition show either to "Share & Attach" (for meetings with guests) oregon "Attach" (for meetings connected your calendar without guests) to the antecedently chosen lawsuit (Figure F). Select the "Share & Attach" (or "Attach") fastener to nexus the papers and subordinate it with the Calendar event. Review and set permissions to guarantee papers access, arsenic prompted.

Figure F

To the close of your gathering notes, prime "Share & Attach" (or "Attach") and past reappraisal and set permissions to let papers access, if prompted.

By default, gathering notes created with this method are untitled, though erstwhile you pat oregon click connected the "untitled" document, the papers sanction volition auto-fill with the contents of the archetypal enactment of your file. If you created it from a blank Google Doc, this would beryllium the day (e.g., "Oct. 20, 2021") followed by the rubric of the event.

Additional considerations: Naming, printing and exporting

Once you person created and linked a Google Doc of gathering notes to a Calendar event, consciousness escaped to rename the Google Doc arsenic desired. For example, alternatively of the reader-friendly day format default (e.g., "Oct. 20, 2020"), I similar to person dates successful a year-month-day sequence, since I find this format gives maine a reliable mode to find files with search. I typically enactment the dates aft the rubric (e.g., "TechNotes - 20201020), though if you enactment the day archetypal that enables sequential sorts.

You besides whitethorn take to export oregon people your gathering notes. When printed, the astute chips for the date, lawsuit rubric and each attendee show arsenic substance surrounded by a airy grey screen, overmuch arsenic the chips look connected a computer. And if you export your Google Doc gathering notes to a .docx oregon .pdf format file, these record formats crook the astute chips into substance that links to the Google Calendar lawsuit (on the web) and each participant's email address, respectively.

What's your acquisition with gathering notes?

Do you consistently adhd gathering notes erstwhile you make a Google Calendar event? Or bash you hold the process and adhd gathering notes later, either from the Calendar lawsuit oregon with the assistance of the @ paper successful Google Docs? Let maine cognize if and however this caller functionality has changed your gathering enactment workflow successful Google Docs and Calendar, either with a remark beneath oregon connected Twitter (@awolber).

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