![]() ![]() You may be tempted to check your email or attend to other work, but multi-tasking is perilous because you don’t want to be caught unprepared if asked a sudden question.Įven if you don’t need to be fully engaged in the meeting, your professional reputation can suffer if it even looks like you’re not paying attention. But in a video conference where you’re muted (and maybe in your pajama pants), it’s easy to forget you’re still being watched. In a conventional meeting, participants are typically very mindful of their presence. Preparation is critical, so take time before the meeting to pick your location and put your head fully in frame to ensure you’re putting your best face forward. Find an environment where the background is simple, reflecting your professionalism. Distracting elements will pull attention away from you. Cluttered rooms make communicators seem disorganized. If only half of your head is in sight, please adjust the camera.Īlso be mindful of your background. If your entire torso is in view, you’re too far away. If your head is cut off at the top or bottom, you’re too close. In a video conference, your head and the top of your shoulders should dominate the screen. The farther away or more obscured you appear, the less engaging you will be. Proximity plays a big part in how audiences perceive you as a communicator. Using a loud voice will also keep you from mumbling and from speaking too quickly due to the amount of breath required. So even though you’re using an external or internal microphone and thus may be tempted to speak at a conversational volume, maintain a strong, clear voice as if you’re in a large conference room. This concept is just as true in virtual conferences as it is in actual ones. I always counsel my students and clients to use a louder-than-usual voice because, in addition to being audible, strong voices convey authority, credibility, and confidence. The more you use it, the more comfortable you’ll become with it. Practice looking into your camera during video conferences when you speak, even for brief moments. It’s challenging to focus on your camera for an entire meeting - especially while others are talking - but know that you increase the impact of your points when you look deep into the dot. Speaking into a cold black circle will not feel natural or comfortable - as humans, we’re trained to look at the people we’re talking to - but know that entertainers and politicians have been doing it for decades. In a video conference, this means looking into the video camera, not at the smiling faces of Marcia, Greg, Cindy, Peter, Jan, and Bobby. Focus on your camera, not your colleaguesĮvery presentation coach will tell you that direct eye contact is a vital way to reinforce your point. To help keep your impact actual when your presence is virtual, consider these six recommendations: 1. So close those other windows, turn your phone upside down, and remember that you’re always “on camera.”Įlevating both your point and your presence in a Zoom, Skype, or similar virtual meeting, requires not only engaging in video conference-friendly tactics but also disabusing yourself of potentially detrimental misconceptions about the medium. Even if you don’t need to be fully engaged in the meeting, your professional reputation can suffer if it even looks like you’re not paying attention. Use a louder-than-usual voice because, in addition to being audible, strong voices convey authority, credibility, and confidence. ![]() In a video conference, this means looking into the video camera. Every presentation coach will tell you that direct eye contact is a vital way to reinforce your point. ![]() Elevating both your point and your presence in a Zoom, Skype, or similar virtual meeting requires engaging in video conference-friendly tactics. Communication tactics that work well among colleagues in a conference room may not translate seamlessly to a virtual meeting. ![]()
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