Virtual Meetings: Do You Really Need to Turn the Cameras On?

Zoom fatigue is more apparent than ever after spending more than a year in a pandemic. Video meetings can be exhausting, whether you work from home full-time, work remotely a few days a week, or hop on video calls in the office.

According to a Harvard Business Review study, regularly utilising a video camera at work is linked to fatigue. Employees who are exhausted from virtual meetings are also more prone to disengagement.

Cameras are a terrific method to observe and connect with your coworkers visually; even seeing body language can help you interpret and cooperate with team members online. However, cameras-on meetings can become tedious after a series of meetings or on a busy day. 

Whether cameras are turned on or off by default at your company, here are a few short questions to consider before scheduling that meeting and help make your meetings more effective, productive, and less stressful.

How to decide whether your meeting should be recorded or not.

1. Are you going to meet someone new?

If that's the case, the cameras should be turned on! The greatest approach to connecting with someone new is to do it as face-to-face as possible, which means cameras on in the virtual world. You may not require cameras if this is not the case.

 

2. Do you work as part of a group?

Brainstorming sessions with cameras on can be a terrific method to bounce ideas off each other without interrupting each other since you might be able to read body language to see if someone has an idea or is ready to speak! 

Cameras optional may allow participants to turn their camera off for greater focus if this is a collaborating session where everyone is simply reading from a paper or doing their own work.

There are instances where it is necessary to turn your camera on.

Ask yourself question 3 if this isn't a collaborative session.

 

3. What are your plans for the meeting?

If you're merely observing a presentation as an observer, it should be okay to turn off the cameras and remain silent.

Turning your camera on while you're speaking is a better bet if you're expected to give feedback. You should probably keep your camera on if the meeting is one-on-one, and you'll be chatting about half the time.

 

4. Will this be a regular meeting?

Recurring meetings are a fantastic way to stay in touch with coworkers about specific issues, responsibilities, or projects, so keeping your camera on can help you feel more engaged. 

However, it would help if you didn't assume you need your camera on all of the time. That implies cameras-off meetings may be the best option. Check in with your coworkers before each daily, weekly, or monthly meeting to see if they'd prefer a cameras-on or cameras-off meeting.

 

5. Is it possible that this meeting will be conducted over the phone?

If you're still undecided about whether this meeting should be video-mandatory or optional, ask yourself this question: Is it possible to do this meeting over the phone and still be as efficient and productive? 

If yes, and you don't need to share your screen, make or suggest the meeting be conducted over the phone. This gives you and your staff more freedom to take the call from anywhere they need to. Sometimes the best ideas emerge during phone talks while walking!

 

Bonus Question: How do I identify if a meeting is video-optional or video-mandatory to my coworkers?

Giving your coworkers early notice of whether or not a meeting will be recorded is the best method to inform them.

If you're hosting the meeting, you may specify whether cameras should be turned on or off in the meeting invite, whether it's in the notes or the description.

If this is a regular meeting and you want to change whether the cameras should be on or off, send a quick message to your team before the meeting.

 

Do you prefer meetings with or without cameras? Let us know in the comments.

 

Source: FairyGodBoss