Stop scheduling meetings that conflict with your favorite sports | Artificial intelligence

As we know, “scheduling nirvana” means more than saving time scheduling meetings, it also means being able to block certain times when you don’t want any scheduling conflicts. This is particularly true for sports fanatics, especially when their favorite teams or events are occuring during the confines of their scheduling hours.

One of our Time Lords, Al Wasserberger, stumbled upon this very discovery while importing his shared calendars for his beloved Chicago Cubs and Bears into his connected Office 365 email. Now, the Executive Chairman at Streamweaver knows he can devote his full attention to important games throughout the season.

“[Sports] are a big part of my life and it’s awesome that Amy can understand that,” states Wasserberger, “I can be assured that my assistant will never book a meeting on top of a Bears or a Cubs game.”

Most of the major leagues and teams offer ICS downloads for their calendars and can be found with a quick Google search. Once you’ve downloaded the ICS and shared it on your calendar, you’ll see it listed in the “Connected Calendar” preference on my.x.ai. Check the box on your team’s calendar, and Amy + Andrew will know not to schedule anything during those games.

While this isn’t as problematic on Sundays when NFL teams typically play (though Wasserberger does conduct business on Sunday too), it helps enormously for events that occur in the afternoons, like several MLB games do during the long baseball season. When following those games is a time-honored ritual, connecting those calendars is essential. 

“I lived in Chicago for 20 years, and it was part of the community and culture to go to afternoon Cubs games,” recalls Wasserberger, “now customers on a call don’t have to hear me reacting to the game that’s on in the background.”

The same feature is also valuable for international events, which dip into default scheduling hours more frequently. Our Director of Technology Joey Betras, a fervent FC Barcelona supporter (booooo), connects Barca’s schedule to his x.ai account so he can track games without conflicts. A contingent of the office was also grateful for being able to block times during the World Cup.

Alternatively, if a game is inconsequential, you can delete the event directly in your calendar to free up that time, or simply tell Amy + Andrew to schedule over it. The latter also works if you want to invite guests to watch the game, as Wasserberger has done for an upcoming Bears game he’s feeling rather confident about.