Stan Lubeck January 13, 2021

Everyone seems to be online, video-chatting with Zoom, Google Hangouts, Skype, FaceTime, Microsoft Teams etc. With the quarantine, people are more available than ever as they work from home (WFH), and necessitating the need for hosting skills and some enforcement of “video etiquette.”

Staff meetings, small group Bible studies, committee meetings, Board meetings are becoming the norm as we have embraced this new tool, and it is here to stay.

Here are a few tips to improve this new experience:

1. Shorten the Meeting

People are looking at screens more than ever and there is a limit for how long a person can stay focused. Screen fatigue is a real thing, so cut to the chase, have an agenda, end the meeting on time. Those who want to continue conversations can do so in a chat-room afterwards. Avoid the awkward exit, when the business is done, but people continue to talk about trivial things.

A two hour Bible study might now last an hour. A Board meeting might no longer go all night… 🙂

2. Leaders Lead

The host, or facilitator of the meeting needs to take control of the meeting and know how to mute those who are creating distractions, or have children in the background etc. A mute button is a powerful tool online, if only we had one in physical meetings :). It should be used sparingly, but if someone is going too long on a tangent, this tool can be vital in bringing the topic back into focus before losing others.

3. Include Everyone

Pay attention to involving everyone in the conversation. Don’t put anyone on the spot, but seek to draw out both introverts and extroverts, as everyone has a contribution to make. It is good to have an agenda so everyone can anticipate how they might contribute. You might consider screen-sharing a Google Doc where everyone can write their thoughts in real time, providing a running journal of the meeting with one screen for the video and one screen for the Google Doc.

4. Promote Video Etiquette

Make a list of what is expected during a Zoom meeting and send it to everyone:
* Log in with “mute” on.
* Remove all cats from the room (children too, as adorable as they might be…) Dogs are OK… Just kidding.
* Put a “do not disturb” card on the door of the room, so family members or roommates know you are in a meeting.
* If using a phone, make it stationary. Constant adjustments can be quite annoying and distracting. “You can get your ‘steps’ in later, so sit still for this short meeting.”

What would you add?

5. Learn “Zoom” Tools

Record

Save the meeting and share it with anyone who was not able to attend.

Chat

Share written content or provide links to other resources.

Mute

Encourage everyone to mute themselves unless they are talking. This eliminates feedback and background noise.

Gallery View

Allows you can to see everyone at once.

Share Screen

Place documents, PowerPoint slides, PDFs, anything you want the participants to see on your screen. This is a great way to keep everyone on the same page. I will share the agenda of the meeting on the screen to help everyone stay focused on the current topic.

Whiteboard.

Great for creatives who like to think and draw at the same time.

I believe that these digital tools are going to be even more strategic as we connect online into the future. Imagine if we cannot meet in large settings for the next year. The sooner we adapt and embrace this technology, the better off we will be in the future.

Hope this helps!

Stan Lubeck