4 Lessons from filming a LinkedIn Learning Course...remotely across 14 time zones

Welcome back to my LinkedIn newsletter where I share tips and ideas to help strengthen distributed teams and grow global sales.

For those of you who do not know me, I build sales pipelines and develop leadership training programs that help companies increase business across regions and prepare next-gen leaders for tomorrow's global threats and opportunities.

I wrote a book about the lessons learned, good, bad and ugly, when expanding into foreign markets called The Accidental Business Nomad: A Survival Guide for Working Across a Shrinking Planet.  It won an award, which is cool.

Be sure to also check out the book's bonus material that includes distributed team building templates and communication tools. 

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4 Lessons from filming a LinkedIn Learning Course...remotely across 14 time zones

The initial worry was sunburn and an inability to move.

I had committed to participating in a half ironman race on a Sunday and then immediately take the 16+ hour flight to California to begin filming the LinkedIn Learning course I had been invited to write and deliver. The fear was that I would be bright red and hobbling by the time I arrived for the video shoot. In retrospect, this was such a 2019 kind of thing to worry about! Of course everything collapsed. No races, no overseas trips and no fancy video shoots. Everything got put on hold for a year until last week when we filmed the course ... virtually.

I want to share 4 lessons learned from the LinkedIn Learning team and how they continue to create great content even when setting up and directing these high-end videos remotely.

1) Create a clear framework that allows for creative ideas. Even before Covid-19 hit, the LinkedIn learning team was clear and detailed about what they wanted. Submit a demo video using a specific approach. Write a sample script in this clear format. There were parameters as well as room for self-expression an important balance for working remotely.

2) The first call included possibly the most important lesson of all. My main point of contact asked me this question that hardly anyone asks, but everyone should:

"How do you like to communicate?"

I recommend anyone starting a new client engagement or working with a new employee or partner add this into their initial meeting agenda. There are so many communication styles out there, having this discussion up-front saves time and reduces the likelihood for misunderstandings.

How would you answer this question? It is worth carefully thinking about.

3) Evolve. The topic of the course is Expanding your business overseas. It was written before the pandemic. The business landscape changed, so we adapted the content accordingly. One of my favorite modules is Expanding Overseas Without Traveling. This will no doubt be a skill set in high demand in the coming years.

4) Constraints inspire creativity. My home office has hardly any space. They found it. In our case, all of the equipment was rented (this may have been the first time they recorded remotely from Singapore). Equipment doesn't always work and some items were missing. Not a problem we used what we had. No lighting tripod? No problem. My underused triathlon bike was converted into a lighting stand. The mic didn't work through Zoom for some reason. No issues. A second tablet got connected to another conferencing tool and ... bam the team got it to work. The team was filled with pros.

Lighting, sound and direction was managed 14 time zones away. We improvised when needed. We didn't worry about what wasn't working and focused instead on what we could make happen. Dodging wires, bikes, children and squawking toucans outside the window were all part of the rollercoaster ride that is working in distributed global teams.

... now if only someone could have helped with hair, makeup and acting skills...Even expert remote teams have their limitations!