Video conferences are here to stay. What to do?

In March 2021 Portugal completed one year of the pandemic. A lot has changed in our lives, one of the most obvious changes being social distancing and its consequences. One of them was the migration to videoconferencing platforms as an alternative to face-to-face meetings and classes. If you're like most professionals or students, you probably spend the majority of your workdays on Zoom (or Google Meet, MS Teams, Webex, or another such platform). If offices and in-person classes return, all studies point to the maintenance of many of the practices adopted during this period, such as online meetings and remote work. Therefore, when life returns to normal you will continue to spend a lot of time in video meetings.

Because this change was so sudden, there was no time for training on how to make the most of video conferencing. But it's not too late! We leave you with some tips to take you to the next level of online meetings!

 1 - Find the right space

If you usually hold video conferences from any space in the house, it's time to create a place that you know you can always use for that and prepare it. Choose a comfortable area, with good lighting and acoustics and some privacy. Make sure your laptop is positioned so that you are looking directly at the camera.

2 - Get the kit.

These are the devices that will help you get the most out of online meetings or classes, without having to make a large investment:

• Screen screen - allows you to use a convincing image for your background and change it whenever you think it's appropriate. When you simply use a virtual background without a green screen, the person's body starts to blend in with what is behind them, which distracts both themselves and the other participants in the meeting.
• Microphone - interference and bad audio are some of the most annoying elements of online meetings. Make your voice clear and reduce ambient noise with headphones or an external microphone
• Lighting - this variable has the power to greatly improve or destroy your appearance. In some cases, this may not even be an important factor, but if it is a serious meeting or a job interview, for example, it will have a lot of influence. A few LED lights, at an affordable price, will make all the difference.
• Cable connection - Wifi, even in the best-served parts of the country and the world, is not always reliable and video call communications require a lot of bandwidth. To ensure that your camera doesn't freeze when you're giving a presentation, it's best to get a cable to connect your computer directly to the router.

3 - Get ready.

In the office, there was no need for much preparation for a meeting, all you had to do was leave your desk and go to the meeting room. At home, the situation changes. There are some precautions you should take:

• Keep your computer, cell phone, headphones and lights ready to use. Before you go to sleep, leave everything charging so you don't have unpleasant surprises when you need them.
• Constant interruptions are annoying and reduce your productivity and professionalism. To avoid them, turn off ringtones, alarms and notifications on all your devices. Put a do not disturb sign on the door of the room where you are working. Make sure you don't schedule deliveries during your most important meeting times

Some like it more than others. But video conferencing is here to stay, regardless of whether we physically return to the office or classes. By adopting these practices, you will improve your performance and stand out in your online workplace!