“You’re sitting at a desk, hopping from zoom call to zoom call, wondering why you need to have video going as your eyes go crossed and you realize that you really should have invested in an ergonomic chair before the country ran out of them…” — VonWong, the G.O.A.T.
This one is for the Zoom Warriors of COVID-19.
Admit it, you’re exhausted by work-from-home + quarantine. BBC notes that The Reason Zoom Calls Drain Your Energy is we’re using the same tools for work and play, so even when we’re trying to have fun, subconsciously everything feels like a meeting. (Nailed it.)
When COVID-19 hit Toronto, my workplace settled into virtual delivery model surprisingly quickly. It was incredible to see how neatly everyone shifted gears. It felt like we didn’t miss a beat.
Honestly, it made me feel proud and safe, as so many other folks were losing their jobs. We celebrated virtual, for good reason. It was the tie binding us together in this difficult time.
The problem came a few weeks in, when the novelty and play of our first week of video meetings started to fade into a steady digital buzz. Seven weeks in now, lots of folks are asking to jump off video and just chat on the phone. Tired of staring themselves in their virtual reflection as they work online with their peers.
Our minds continue to travel across the world every hour or two, as we connect with each other and develop our work, but our physical bodies are stuck in the same 20 x 20 ft most days. And though we’re so far away from each other, it feels intense to have your face broadcast up to 8 hours a day. I’m starting to appreciate the energy and endurance that television professionals have.
Of course, there’s a big range of situations — from cottages to micro-apartments, but one things is constant. Our minds are running 100 miles an hour while our bodies are in pseudo-stasis. While we digitally try to ninja the economy to stay in motion, our physical world paused like a Matrix back-bend.
I think the solutions are very personal; and I want to name how classist this all is in the grand scheme of things.
But for me — one of the zoom warriors of COVID-19 — these 4 habits really helped me overcome my zoom fatigue:
- Limit video calls to maximum 4 hours day. And I mean both for work and for leisure. I know this is hard, especially for people who are used to 8-hour-a-day meetings, and for people whose recreation and family time just moved online too. If that’s you, see the next bullet point.
- Learn to let some stuff go. Lower your expectations. We don’t need to hold on to everything right now. Downsize and focus. Just keep the things that really give you joy. If this feels really hard too, see the next bullet point.
- Use your voice instead. Do you really need to be looking at each other? Maybe you can just talk it out, or you can write it out. Maybe even draw. There’s a lot of ways to work. It’s possible you’re overusing your video tool and it’s reinforcing bad work habits.
- Invite movement into video meetings. I realized everyone wants to stretch their legs during work hours. We can hold space for that! The rest of this article talks about how your can facilitate movement in your virtual meetings in a more intentional way than we ever did in-person.
Let’s Move.
In my physical office, I used to take walking breaks between meetings to keep my body awake at work. The walk to work, the walk down the hall to the bathroom, the jaunt to the cafeteria for lunch, the walk home, wandering in circles looking for someone or something. All those things keep me “on”. So, I was thinking…
Q: How could I keep my body turned “on” in a 8-hour work day with back-to-back zoom calls?
A: I guess I had to bring movement into the meetings themselves.
Generally, I think movement for virtual meetings needs to:
- Meet people where they are without judgement
- Be short but meaningful
- Be friendly and fun
Luckily I have great colleagues who agreed to try something a bit different with our meetings to test this whole ‘movement for virtual meetings’ thing.
Our first experiment was a 10-minute yoga break for a virtual workshop we were facilitating. Here’s a quick guide:
Yoga Break Guide — 10 minutes
Preparation:
- Pick a space you want to use to facilitate the movement. How will you set yourself up?
- Design a movement flow (example in video). Think of standing/sitting movements for people in big/small spaces. Make sure you have alternatives to give people that work in any space set-up.
- Test your flow and set-up with a team member. Call them up and walk them through your idea. Ask them for their feedback.
- Pick clothing that you can move in but that you’re comfortable wearing in a professional setting.
Optional
- Find bluetooth headphones / sports headphones so folks can hear you well as you move around.
- Find a backup camera (a DSLR or your phone) to video capture your class. If you can, hook up a mic to the backup camera so the recording gets your voice.
Set-up:
- Arrive early to the workshop/meeting. Set up your space and test out your equipment before the workshop/meeting starts. Troubleshoot positioning, audio, visual.
- Join your meeting!
Facilitate the break:
Introduction
- When the time is right, set up a breakout room on your Zoom or whatever video software you’re using.
- First, check in with the participants. Help them get comfortable/settle in. Ask them where they are and how much room they have.
- Then explain the benefit of moving. Talk about what works for you.
- Check in about the flow and ambiance. If you’re playing music in the background, ask about volume.
- Honour our different spaces. Let everyone know this is a no judgement space. We are all in very different settings, wearing different clothes, and that’s okay. We are where we are.
- Let the participants know that you will be giving variations for small/big spaces. Long story short, if you’re in a small space, the variations will be sitting.
- Invite folks not to take this too seriously. This is a break for us, so enjoy.
Flow (example in the video)
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Rock: back and forth, heels to toes.
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Reach up: send your energy up to the sky and down to the ground
- Forward fold: release head, fold hands into elbow, shake head yes/no
- Plank (or kneel): focus on engaging the arms and core
- Back bend: either in an upward dog or from kneeling position
- Downward dog (or forward bend): focus on bringing your head down with a straight back
- Forward fold: release head, fold hands into elbow, shake head yes/no
- Reach up: send your energy up to the sky and down to the ground
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Reach up: send your energy up to the sky and down to the ground
- Side stretch right: open your left side, send your hands to the right
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Side stretch left: open your right side, send your hands to the left
- Reach up: send your energy up to the sky and down to the ground
- Side stretch right: open your left side, send your hands to the right
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Side stretch left: open your right side, send your hands to the left
- Warrior variations on right side (or chair): warrior 1, warrior 2, side angle, focus on engaging the legs
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Reach up: send your energy up to the sky and down to the ground
- Warrior variations on left side (or chair): warrior 1, warrior 2, side angle, focus on engaging the legs
- Stand: ground your feet, centre your attention
- Give thanks
At the end of the 10 minutes, re-join the main room of the workshop :)
