Hi All,
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I¡¯m already appreciating the wisdom on display here - thanks for organizing this Nancy!
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Okay, I¡¯ll add my 2? to the conversation:
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I¡¯ll echo the point about ensuring you have good audio. If you can swing it, have someone on your end who can troubleshoot any tech issues leaving you free to be fully available for the rest of the participants. I also find it helpful to have everyone who is not talking to mute themselves - this cuts down on extraneous noise.
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Given the prevalence of electronic distractions in our lives, I find it highly useful to set a couple of conditions at the outset of a remote meeting.?
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First, I remind folks that because we are not in the same physical space, it requires us to expend extra effort to sense the mood an feel connected to others during the meeting. Having a good check in question can help a lot here.
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Next, I request that people please close all applications except Zoom (and maybe a simple text editor that they can use to take notes). Please don¡¯t have email, IM and browser windows open because it is sooo easy to shift our focus to the app and away from the work we¡¯re attempting on the call.
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I also ask them to please silence their cell phones and only answer calls that are absolutely necessary during work periods -some ppl need to be available to handle family or work emergencies which is totally fine.
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If people do need to step out for a quick bio break or a call, it helps if they type ¡°BRB¡± in the chat window. That let¡¯s folks know that during the time when they are away, decisions should not be made that require the consensus of the whole group. It¡¯s especially important if they don¡¯t have active video due to low bandwidth issues. In those cases, ask them to type ¡°back¡± when they return.
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It can also be useful to ask the group about their experience in conducting online meetings and what they have been particularly impressed with that has worked well in other meetings. This is a great way to get people¡¯s voices in the room and sometimes we all learn about a wonderful new innovation.
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Lastly, (in the category of learning from participants what works well) I learned a very cool way to keep people from talking over each other that¡¯s surprisingly effective. When someone finishes speaking, count two heartbeats before you attempt to respond. For some reason this seems to synchronize people in a way where it¡¯s rare for two people to jump in at the same time.
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Kind regards,
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Ken (Homer)
Nancy White
