As I write, we are 8 months into the Corona pandemic and I have to say, some days I find that easier than others. So many things have changed – and these past 8 months have given us so many ‘new’ things to contend with.
We have new terms.
I’ve certainly experienced ‘HOESTSCHAAMTE’ – cough shame when getting a dry throat in the supermarket.
And the tightening of my clothes is a sure sign that I’ve contracted ‘CORONASPECK’. A German term that literally means that extra layer of fat people has gained through comfort-eating during the pandemic.
I don’t know anyone who hasn’t been thrown around on the ‘CORONACOASTER’.
We have, of course, ‘the new normal’.
I believe that only now, can we just start using this term accurately. From March 2020 onward, in Europe we were in crisis – there was not normal at all, new or otherwise.
We experienced turmoil, massive change, uncertainty. And that is still true – but we are settling into something more familiar. Reduced travel is expected, not hugging our friends is the way it is, there’s no dancing at concerts. I’m not saying any of this is OK – I desperately want to see my mum and dad in the UK – but it’s the ‘new normal’.
And we have a whole new way of working and communicating.
In the early months of this crisis, our communications were also in crisis mode. We were happy if we all just understood what Zoom was. Or if someone – anyone – responded during the meetings that we led.
But now. But now I think it’s time to revise where we are.
Virtual and remote communications and presentations are here to stay. And we need to ask the tough questions.
– Am I being as effective in my communications online as I was offline?
– I might be talking to people but am I really engaging and connecting?
– Are we getting balanced contributions from everyone ‘participating’?
If this is it, is it good enough?
If the answer is ‘no’ to any of these then don’t go away.
While I might have been quiet, there’s been activity under the radar. I have been working with a number of clients on their virtual communication effectiveness. I have designed a range of new virtual training courses and taken my coaching programmes online. I’ve seen for myself what’s going on in organisations as they grapple with a new way of working and communicating.
Once a month I am going to bring you a video with simple tips and approaches that I have seen to work over the past few months. They will help you be more efficient, more engaging, more effective when communicating virtually.
I hope these tips help you avoid the gobbledygook and go for straight talking!
My first video gives tips to ensure online meeting PARTICIPATION
