A committee is a group that keeps minutes and loses hours.

In this quote, Milton Berle humorously critiques the inefficiency and bureaucracy often associated with committees. By saying, "A committee is a group that keeps minutes and loses hours," Berle highlights how committees, while focused on recording minutes (the official written summary of a meeting), often end up wasting significant amounts of time without achieving meaningful results. The quote reflects the frustration many people feel with the slow pace of decision-making and the excessive focus on formalities rather than productive outcomes.

The humor in this statement comes from the clever wordplay between minutes (the formal records of a meeting) and hours (the time lost during endless discussions and delays). Berle, known for his comedic wit, points out the paradox of committees: they spend a lot of time organizing and documenting, yet fail to make efficient use of their time or achieve tangible results. The quote is a lighthearted criticism of how committees often become bogged down in administrative tasks, like keeping accurate records, rather than focusing on action.

Berle’s comment is a reflection on the bureaucratic nature of organizational structures, where the focus on procedure and documentation can sometimes overshadow actual progress. The idea that committees "lose hours" suggests that, despite having multiple people involved, they often lack the efficiency or momentum to move things forward quickly, which can be a source of frustration in both workplaces and governance.

Ultimately, Milton Berle's quote is a humorous observation about the inefficiency of committees and the contrast between their focus on documentation and their lack of real productivity. It speaks to a common criticism of organizational meetings, where the process of discussing and recording can sometimes feel more important than actually making decisions and getting work done.