A thread....

Zoom/Teams are slowly killing us.
And we’re slowly killing them.
It’s got to stop.
We should be friends with our online platforms.
Now and into the future.
How?

Remember the escape from the office in March? I was lucky that the brilliant @jumpstartpaul had @ResusCouncilUK all set up with tech we needed to continue business as (kinda) usual from home

Having previously been on hundreds on conference calls from Scotland to London HQs with about as much reception as Apollo 13, this was, and is, a technological God-send. And we mustn’t lose sight of this. And it’s here to stay, to a greater not lesser extent.

But we’ve moved on from the heady first days of novelty calling and checking out each other’s kitchen tiles for interior design tips.

As summer gives way to autumn and winter, and restrictions tighten, we all getting tired of this abnormal year. A bit scunnered, so to speak.

And Teams/Zoom are falling victim to a ‘Pavlovian association’ - Russian bloke, messed wae dugs’ heids... not some Bake Off fanclub

We need to be mindful of this guilt by association. But we also need to be more innovative & thoughtful in how we use meeting tech & how we work remotely.

We’re getting ‘Zoom-ed out’ - mentally, emotionally, physically - if you could sue McDonalds for hot coffee, who (in America!) will be first to sue for Zoom-induced DVT or bedsores?!?!?
And takes its toll on posture & movement. Big time.

So we increasingly associate these platforms not with a virtual office.... more like an uncomfortable meeting room, where we’re padlocked to the seat. What to do? How about?

If you worked in a team that sat together and burbled away to each other to co-create, why not jump on a voice call together (no video, remember you’re still in your jammies!). Someone pop on the radio. Chat. Work & chat. Especially if you’re living alone and feeling isolated

Place strict limits on your ‘video calls exposure’. Too much of anything does you no good. This requires leadership, permissions & support from good leaders. And they need to lead by example.

Bloody ‘phone each other!!!!!
Office comms were bad enough with emails. A hundred lines of potential misinterpretation & unintended offence, when a 2 min call would suffice

Use Zoom/Teams to talk to one another. Like you’ve popped over to their desk.
Start the conversation speaking human, cakes, children, pets, fitba, planes....whatever.
Do the business chat.
Speak human. Thank you & see you soon

And repeat.

This movie is Contagion, not Terminator. The machines are our friends....if we use them properly.