Dealing With Zoom Fatigue

One of the reasons for the success of audio platforms like Clubhouse is very understandable and recognizable to many: I suspect that this has to do with (and is a result of) the phase in which we are in development in online communication. The corona pandemic has forced us to converse from home via video. Forced to sit in front of a camera, often for many hours on end, meeting after meeting. People want to participate, of course. Because the boss wants it, it’s required to engage with colleagues, and there are also fun times, besides work. And most people are trying their best to look reasonably acceptable on video, as they would in old style office situations. But not all day long. Nobody wants to be watched by a bunch of people, all day long. We are not Kardashians. We have had enough. And that is very understandable. And normal. But there’s hope!

Being in video calls all day (!) is the result of not adjusting meeting habits from the in real life office. If you keep doing the same thing you did in a real office, you keep staring at a camera all day long. And it leaks away energy and focus you also need to get actual work done. Businesses and professionals would help themselves a lot more by having less meetings, and scheduling them for just 15 minutes or so. Yesterday I spoke to someone (while I was feeding the ducks outside, and enjoying the sunshine) who had seventeen (17!) video calls in one day. Without breaks in between. I heard that twelve video meetings a day is no exception for many people. Frankly, I think it’s all…

1. a bit much. Nobody has the capacity to be sharp all day long or to have good conversations all the time. Your average Joe certainly doesn’t, and we shouldn’t expect this of ourselves and of others.

2. the opposite of creative. All that time in seemingly endless meetings is chipping away off your time to work on solving issues and on finding creative solutions to all sorts of challenges, and to write, design, create, and think with attention. And it robs us of focus. It is downright robbery. Simple sum : 7 people in one weekly meeting of two hours (this is average for 1 project). That is 14 hours of meeting time in total. Let’s assume these 7 people work on three major projects, so that’s 3 x 14 hours = 42 hours in just meetings. That’s pretty much a whole week. What if these 7 people worked on their tasks and had short info exchanges with colleagues in platforms like Trello, Slack or the like, and have 1 meeting for 20 minutes (for decision making, presentation and social check-in) or so, that would mean 7 people x 20 minutes = 140 minutes (2,3 hours) per project. For three projects: 7 hours in total. 1 hour per week, per person. Now THAT’S acceptable. AND it provides EVERYBODY with enough time to get work done in enough focused, silent time. In a nutshell: stop wasting your own and your coworkers’ precious time. You’re robbing yourself, and others. If you can control 80% remotely via Slack or Trello, do it. Do you need to vote or do you want a brainstorm, fine. Have a meeting. But please don't continue the office rituals as they were in the building you commuted to, back in the day. Today is another day.

3. disrespectful. Not everyone is able to assert themselves in online video calls. Many introverts need time to simmer on something before they can respond the right way. Many people just want to think a little longer and more carefully about things and discuss them later. The current social ecosystem of video conferencing isn’t perfect for everyone. Typical extroverts seem to thrive in online meetings, but not everyone is like that. And no, turning the camera off is not the solution. Plus, not everyone peaks in productivity and focus at every moment of the working day.

4. unnecessary and unproductive. Travel time and coffee breaks were useful: you could switch quietly to your own thoughts, and prepare yourself mentally for the upcoming work or conversations. Packing your schedule with talks all day long drains your energy level.

As a matter of fact, that entire video roulette did not have to be implemented so extremely. Teams can prepare tasks, presentations and other work in Slack or Trello (or wherever you do your work and store with your team) with little hassle, and only discuss decisions and short check-ins in video conferences. But in all the past twelve months of remote working, I mainly hear stories about overwhelmed, exhausted and overloaded professionals with Zoom burnout, fearing their own laptop in their own home. People need to be able to work in peace, and get their work done in a way that is supporting their productivity style. Making adjustments to make this happen for EVERYONE is healthy and sensible.

Basic check: do people in your online meetings always look their best, and perfectly alert? And what about yourself? People scroll on their phones, stare at a document on another screen, nod occasionally, and say whenever it is expected of them. But the energy is seeping away like a swimming pool in September. Energy that you could have used to work effectively, and with…JOY. Enjoying your work is important. The way you have meetings (or don’t have them), adds to joy or to misery.

It's all quite challenging for many people.

WHAT CAN WE DO?

We can organize this smarter, more relaxed and less time-consuming. Because this #remoteworking situation isn’t going anywhere for some time. I don't really mind it that much, really. I’ve been working remotely for years, and I feel comfortable with this. However, we do have to look out for each other’s mental health and productivity preferences. In weird times like these, we need to prioritize well-being first, in addition to the job results we all want to achieve.

So how do YOU prefer to organize the way you synch things with colleagues in your projects?

Do YOU have any influence on how this is organized, or are you expected to smile and nod to everything without complaining?

YOU manage your time and your agenda yourself, or is it stacked up to the brim by coworkers?

Take control of your own productivity style wherever it’s possible. Your time is also ticking away, you will not get it back. Design your working days in synch with your goals and your natural working style. It may be as simple as blocking 45 minutes every day at 12:30PM to go for a walk. It may be as simple as not accepting last minute meetings when you have a deadline due in two hours. It may be the simple act of suggesting to shorten any meeting to 30 minutes max, and 5 per day max. If your team isn’t used to working with a tool like Trello, help them by setting an example, and show them the benefits in terms of time saving and maintaining focus and getting results.

This doesn’t have to be hard. It’s only hard (if not impossible) if we’re working with a team of people who aren’t willing to make adjustments. In that case, you know what to do. It might also be hard if you don’t (yet) feel courageous enough to set and protect your boundaries. This is nothing to be ashamed about, but it is something that everyone of us needs to learn and assert at some point.

We already know the covid-19 pandemic has had (and will have) an impact on the mental health and stress level of many, many people. Let's not make matters worse. Let’s take a critical look at whether it is really necessary to have all those video meetings all day long, or whether it can be done in a different, smarter, more peaceful way. Because it is possible. Let's take good care of each other. Good luck, stay strong!

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MORE ACTICLES ON PRODUCTIVITY:

VIDEOS ON ONLINE MEETINGS:

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