Ten Annoying Things you Should Avoid in Virtual Meetings from Home

It has been two full weeks of working from home for me. Virtual meetings have now become a regular occurrence because of this pandemic. And, using the camera on our computers during the meeting has been surprisingly useful for keeping us connected to other humans. It has also made for some funny and sometimes frustrating moments. 

I’ve jotted down the more annoying behaviors I’ve experienced during the twenty or so virtual meetings I’ve attended over the past week. As a public service and for the good of our collective mental health, I present them here as my list of Ten Don’ts for Virtual Meetings from Home:

1) Don’t backlight

If you set up your computer with a bright light or an open window behind you, not only does it make your face look dark and sinister, your audience is distracted by the brightness behind you. Before you start your meeting, close the blinds, turn off the light, or move your desk.

2) Don’t forget mute

We have all done it. Mute is great. We can’t hear you chewing or sighing when you realize the presenter has been on the intro slide for fifteen minutes. But, when it is your turn to talk, remember to un-mute yourself. I have a post-it on my monitor to remind me.

3) Don’t have something moving behind you

I missed a question asked of me in a recent meeting because I was distracted by the ceiling fan behind the speaker’s head. It was on, it was spinning, and the refresh rate on the camera made it lok like it was spinning backward. Cool, but an annoying distraction. You want people listening to you, not counting the back-and-forth of the pendulum on Aunt Martha’s antique clock sitting on the shelf behind you. Move it or turn it off.

4) Don’t clutter your background

Speaking of Aunt Martha’s antique clock, take some time to clean up what people see behind your head. Organize and maybe reduce the number of things you display. It’s OK to share a little bit of who you are or your style, just don’t overdo it to the point of distraction.

5) Don’t Talk without taking a pause, let people interrupt

When you talk, the conferencing software suppresses audio from other people, and you can’t hear them if they have a comment or a question. You need to stop, give it a second, then keep going. I know, you need to get those words out, the only person you talked to yesterday was your dog. It is just annoying to hear someone talk without taking a break and letting others comment.

6) Don’t Apologize for the dog/kids/spouse

We all have the same problem, and it wastes time and has become annoying. Your not unique, move on.

7) Don’t move around while you are talking

Another visual distraction. In a meeting room, swiveling back and forth in your chair may not even be noticed. Do it in a virtual meeting, and your co-workers may want to crawl through the screen, grab your armrests, and shout in your face, “STOP MOVING!”

8) Don’t share the app, share the desktop

One of the best features of virtual meetings is the ability to share a document or an application with everyone on the call. Don’t share the window for the program; share the whole monitor the window is on. If you or the program opens another window, your audience can’t see it. And because you didn’t pause while you are talking, they can’t tell you that they can’t see it.

9) Don’t work in another window during the meeting

I’m always checking emails, our company IM tool, and working on my slides for the next meeting while supposedly paying attention. What I should be doing is paying attention. The best thing to do is close down all windows you don’t need for a meeting before you even log in. The temptation to check LinkedIn is too high.

10) Don’t talk about the pandemic and the response beyond acknowledgment and empathy

We are all dealing with challenges because of this situation. And most of us have passionate views on how the government or others had or should be dealing with it. Save your rant for the virtual happy hour with your friends after work. Stick to the topic of the meeting, so everyone stays focused.

I hope these don’ts will help all of us communicate more efficiently. Hopefully, we will listen and interact during our virtual meetings instead of silently fuming at what someone else is doing in their little video square on your screen. 

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