Video Producer: Hera Khan
Video Editor: Varun Sharma
Video conferencing is nothing new, but right now it pretty much seems like what our lives are all about. So, whether it’s the morning meeting with your team, an important client discussion, or a presentation, here are a few pointers to help you gracefully navigate the new reality of work from home and digital meetings.
We may be working from home, but we are still working. Therefore, like with all meetings, it is important to respect everyone’s time. Come prepared for the meeting, have a clear agenda that you want to follow on the call and most importantly remember that some video meetings can be emails or offline conversations. So decide whether the agenda is worth getting a bunch of people to log into a call.
Find a location that is quiet enough for you to log in from and also looks decent enough for it to not be a distraction for others, like a really messy room. If you have kids and/or pets at home, try and keep them out of the meetings, as adorable as they are.
A video conference with multiple people can become a messy affair, if there isn’t some order to the proceedings. If you are not speaking, keep your microphone on mute, that is basic. And if you want to interject, wait for your turn to speak or use the chat option to ask for a chance to speak. Speaking over each other is a formula that has never really been productive.
And finally, dress for your audience. Your team or your friends may be okay to see you in your sweatpants, your boss or your client may not be. Assess your audience’s expectations and choose an outfit accordingly. To be on the safer side, dress as you would at work, at least the top half.
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