Before ZOOM, there were face to face meetings. And they were a problem.
There were too many, and they were too long, lacked focus, had the wrong people present, and were poorly designed, conducted or chaired. In a word, or phrase, many meetings were considered a waste of time – “colossal” was an oft-used adjective. However, every now and then, the meeting was productive, producing outcomes that we desired, decisions that were clear and could be acted on, and people left energised and motivated. “If only all meetings could be like this” we mused. Meetings were the bane of life at the office, but we accepted them in our desire to collaborate, involve others and get things done.
But then along came COVID and we had to jump online from the hutch that we call “work from home”.
ZOOM became our meeting room. And whilst we were learning this new technology, the very same habits that we created at the office, we took online.
Now we are tired. Our eyes are blurry from staring at a screen all day, our backs and shoulders ache from sitting too long. Plus all the other problems we experienced with meetings pre-COVID. Some of us are bordering on burnout due to the pressure from the multitude of meetings, and the need to stay current with our work and all the other priorities in our lives.
ZOOM FATIGUE is a thing.
But maybe the problem isn’t ZOOM (or whatever platform you use for virtual meetings). Maybe the problem is the very same one you were grappling with at the office – poor meeting design and execution.
Recently, I facilitated a 1-day retreat for a client on ZOOM. They were concerned that the meeting would drag on and people would become disengaged as they had at a retreat a few months before that had lasted over 12 hours (I wasn’t the facilitator). This time, they called me. We carefully designed a retreat where we were clear on objectives, had a defined structure, allowed for breaks, encouraged participation AND finished on time. And that’s what we delivered, resulting in feedback like this:
“Overall very informative and productive session. The facilitator was successfully able to manage time and activities so that all the relevant areas were covered while keeping us fully engaged”
This and many other meetings, webinars, keynotes that I have done virtually over the last few months have made me realise that a well-designed and chaired ZOOM meeting can be as, and even more, productive and efficient than in-person meetings. How can this be?
3 STEPS TO GETTING FROM FATIGUED TO ENERGISED:
Whenever a client tells me about a meeting that lasted from 9.00 a.m. to 7.00 p.m., with a 30- minute break for lunch, as one did a few weeks ago, I point out that any meeting over 2 hours is not a meeting, but a workshop, and should be approached as such. This applies whether it’s in-person or virtual.
There are 3 steps to an energised ZOOM meeting:
- STEP 1 – Define the purpose
- STEP 2 – Design the meeting
- STEP 3 – Deliver the meeting
STEP #1: PURPOSE – WHY DO YOU WANT THIS MEETING?
Let’s get back to basics with a series of questions to ask yourself before you set up that ZOOM meeting. This is the approach I take when asked to facilitate an event:
- What’s the purpose of the meeting? What’s your best desired result? The ZOOM page has space to describe this – use it. An interesting approach is to ask this simple question inspired by Clay Christensen, the late Harvard Business School professor and innovation trailblazer: what job is this meeting intended to do?
- What are the topics for discussion? What questions do you want answered? What decisions do you want made?
- Who MUST be there – and why? It’s tempting to add people in a “more-the-merrier” kind of way. Asking ‘why’ ensures that each person is there for a good reason.
- What preparation is necessary? I observe that much meeting time is devoted to presentations, often with the presenter reading verbatim from their PowerPoint slides. This is a very inefficient use of time. Meetings should be for discussion, so decide what materials you can send beforehand and insist that participants come informed and prepared for discussion.
- When you send the invitation, indicate the purpose of the meeting e.g. “the purpose of this meeting is to make a decision on the location of our next branch”. Indicate the importance of preparation, and of reading the material beforehand.
STEP #2: DESIGN – WHAT SHOULD THE MEETING LOOK LIKE?
Once you have answered these questions, plan the logistics of your virtual meeting. There are 4 key things to decide on when designing the meeting:
- Start time – make sure to remind participants you will be starting on time, and invite them to logon 10 or 15 minutes early to deal with any technology issues.
- Duration – you can set meetings for as short as 15 minutes on ZOOM, so think carefully about how much time you need to get the job done. Setting the duration sends a signal to participants about your desired efficiency.
- Breaks – If your meeting goes longer than an hour, schedule breaks every 50 to 60 minutes. You should encourage people to get up and move, and explain why this is important.
- Agenda – how will the meeting be ordered? Make sure to set ground rules first – start, end time, rules of engagement. Consider the flow of topics you identified, and key decision points. It’s helpful to assign time to each agenda item as a guide, knowing that in the meeting, you will have to maintain some flexibility to facilitate discussions.
STEP #3: DELIVERY – HOW WILL YOU DELIVER AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE?
If you are chairing the meeting, have someone help with the technology and to watch the time. Nowadays, all my virtual workshops have a Production Assistant.
And most importantly, make sure you turn up energised and focused! 2 weekends ago, I participated in a Tony Robbins 5-day challenge. We were on ZOOM for 3 hours every day. He held our attention by his message, activities, but mostly by the immense energy he brought every moment. Here are some tips for managing your energy for maximum impact in your meeting:
- Do your morning self-care ritual – take care of mind, body, spirit
- Schedule NOTHING 30 minutes before the meeting
- Logon early to take care of your own technical issues – and to allow you to welcome participants as they arrive. This also facilitates casual, social interaction as participants are settling in
- Right before the meeting starts, sit quietly and take 3 breaths for relaxation
- Turn off any technology that might distract you
The other side of ZOOM fatigue is the meetings you are invited to. Do you really have to be there? Is this the best use of your time? Will your presence (or absence) make a substantial difference? Learn to say “No” (graciously of course).
Creating joyful workplaces starts with managing our time. Since so much of our work involves meetings, this means managing our meetings. ZOOM does not have to be fatiguing. It can be energising. Like any tool, it is how you use it.
