It can be tempting to lose focus and take care of chores while in a meeting. But this is really as noticeable and impolite as pulling out your phone in a face-to-face meeting. We all work to stay present in the conversation, ready to contribute as needed.
As humans, we instinctively communicate in all kinds of non-verbal ways — and that’s great for collaboration. We turn our cameras on to improve our communication and strengthen our connection.
A strong internet connection is the most important work tool we have. A weak connection that can’t reliably power video calls impedes everyone’s work. That’s an urgent problem that requires an immediate solution. We always have a backup plan, like a good mobile hotspot, in case of dropouts.
Background noise is different in a remote meeting. If you can hear noise near you, it gets amplified for everyone else on the call. We are diligent about muting and unmuting ourselves to help keep the conversation flowing smoothly.
We don’t dial in to meetings from one device, even if we are physically next to each other. This keeps cross-communication down and ensures that all remote participants feel equally involved in the conversation.
Visualizing an idea through a sketch on a whiteboard or piece of paper is a great way to communicate with each other. Even though we’re not gathered around one board, we try to recreate this energy virtually.
Meeting daily is an important part of our work routine. We catch up on projects, announce our work plans, and ask for help if we need it. These meetings keep us aligned and working together.
Whenever we know we’ll be away from work for some time, we let each other know in advance. This helps avoid unnecessary disruption to each other’s work and helps our teammates plan their work if they need input from you. Your time away is protected — we just want to stay on the same page.