Tips for effective communication

Email newsletter - July 30, 2020

Marcia’s Leadership Q&A

Marcia answers leaders’ questions. Send your questions to md@mdaszko.com.

Q. After more than five months of remote work, some of our virtual teams are feeling exhausted. How can we revive all of us?

A. Zoom fatigue (from any platform) has become an unexpected side effect of remote work. There are countermeasures team members can take to monitor and reduce the fatigue or stress. It also means that you have to implement the tips for reducing the fatigue, not just think about it or think that it sounds like a good idea. It means having healthy boundaries for yourself.

Here are a few tips! See what works best for you. Before getting on a Zoom call, take a few minutes to prepare yourself. Get a beverage, go to the restroom, and do some breathing exercises (simply do deep inhales through your nose and long exhales out your mouth) several times. If you’re leading the meeting, prepare an agenda and do a quick review of it as you begin Start with a focused warm-up. You might ask for people to describe in two words how their week-end was or how they feel today. If you ask an open-ended question such as, “How are you or how was your holiday?” you might be 30 minutes into the meeting time before that stops. Instead, schedule a time for a luncheon or Happy Hour for the team or employees to join if they choose.

Another tip is to schedule meeting for 50 minutes, not 60 minutes so you have breaks and meetings aren’t back-to-back. Then people can refresh, summarize notes, or prep for a few minutes for the next meeting.

Throughout the day schedule breaks for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or an hour. Get up and move away from the computer. Change the scenery by going to a different room or go for a walk around your yard or around the block. With even 30 minutes, you may be able to take a short drive.

Periodically, give your eyes a rest by looking away from the screen.  Blink more often. Look across the room; look outside and to the horizon. Take a nap for 15 minutes or at lunchtime to refresh. The most important thing is to take breaks, walk around, do some self-care, exercise, and change your scenery. If you tend to sit at your computer and be on calls four to sight to ten hours a day, this will be a major, but much needed pivot for team members.

Q. Great communication is essential, but especially while we’re working remotely. What are some important ways we can keep improving our communication?

A. At the beginning of every meeting or interaction (by phone, virtual platform, or socially distant in-person), be clear about your aim. What do you need to accomplish together? What help do you need? What problem are you trying to solve? Many people assume these answers, but the reality is that often people are unclear about the direction the company is going, what the team needs to do, or what’s expected.

Communicating purpose saves so much time! It allows for better productivity and great worker satisfaction. Clarity allows workers how best they can contribute. When people understand what to do, why they’re doing it, and then can create together the solutions, work, information, and communication can flow. People excel when they can ask questions, discuss options, look at data in context, and make decisions to apply. Through these times, making a difference and experiencing personal satisfaction to help others contributes to more open, healthy communication. Ask questions, listen, laugh, share, include people, be creative! There are so many ways to communicate!