Photo by Mateus Campos Felipe on Unsplash
Having trouble keeping people engaged and focused during endless video meetings? If so, you’re in good company. That often comes up in coaching sessions these days.
If you’re looking to up the energy of your online meetings, it makes sense to start with your own presence as a leader. While you can’t control the behavior of others, you can influence it by how you show up. This is as true with remote leadership as it is with in-person. Actually, it might be even more important: The scarcity of ongoing social cues can lead people to fill in the blanks with negative assumptions.
When you show up with intentional presence during your remote meetings, you set the stage for the meeting to be more productive, motivating and…dare I suggest it? Fun!
Read on for some “dos” and “don’ts” of remote leadership presence that I’ve gathered during the last year. Chances are, there’s at least one thing you can start doing and one thing you can stop doing. I’ve certainly learned a lot about the subject.
Do
Be there to welcome people if you’re leading the meeting. Welcome each person as they arrive if you can.
Set up a few minutes in advance by allowing at least 5 minutes between meetings.
Create a space that’s welcoming and inclusive, perhaps by doing a check in at the start of the meeting. Here’s a piece on the power of a quick check in.
Set an example by staying on video through the meeting.
Set the viewing options so you can see as many people as possible at a time.
Make sure to sit up straight and convey energy in your body language.
Adjust your chair to a height where you can look into the camera. Make eye contact with the camera as often as you can.
Position people’s windows as close to the camera as possible so you can appear to be making eye contact with them.
Call on people if there’s silence.
Be thoughtful about how many modes of engagement you ask people to use (e.g., chat box, hand raising, polls, etc.) Use enough for variety but not too many to overwhelm or confuse yourself or others. Consider using small group break outs, if available.
Maintain a sense of humor, even when there are technical glitches.
Don’t
Dominate the conversation even if people are slow to respond.
Schedule back-to-back meetings if you have a choice.
Overlook your background or visual distractions. For example, people often position themselves in front of a window which puts their face into the shadows.
Focus on a side screen if that’s not the main camera.
Slump and only show part of your face.
Continue side conversations as people are arriving.
Ignore any participant.
Forget to silence your phone and minimize noisy distractions.
To be honest, at least a few of these come from my own mistakes. And I realize a lot of us are operating in less than optimal situations. But it’s worth paying attention to the things you can control. Even if you’re one of those people who much prefers face-to-face interaction, the likelihood is great that remote leadership is an ongoing part of our work now. We need to pay attention to cultivating presence in this context as well.
What are your dos and don’ts for remote leadership presence? There are a lot of tips I haven’t included here. Please leave a comment below.
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