4 ways to avoid burnout triggered by online meetings
As much as video conferencing has proven to be quick, the fatigue that comes with it can be an important moment to pause and re-evaluate whether virtual meetings are truly necessary.
Until the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, a majority of employers and their employees had in-person meetings, video conferencing was not a common way of holding meetings.
That was then. Due to the pandemic, businesses have embraced online meetings using various tools that emerged at the height of Covid-19. Even as workplaces reopened and employees returned to offices, online meeting were retained due to their convenient nature besides saving on logistical costs. But online meetings carry disadvantages too, with many employees complaining of burnout due to too many virtual meetings that run for long periods of time.
Below are a few tips on how to survive online meeting exhaustion and remain productive.
1. Avoid distraction
One of the key factors to a successful Zoom meeting is ensuring you are at a calm place, have a stable internet connection and are using the right gadget. Attending an online meeting at an office full of colleagues or at an open public place will only mean distraction from time to time, leading to unproductivity.
If possible, use the office boardroom to limit movement and interaction with colleagues, and if at home, lock yourself in a quiet empty room.
Another important factor is to ensure that you are using a laptop or computer. When using a phone, you will be tempted to scroll through social media and lose track of the meeting.
Also have a notebook to write down important points since this will help to keep you focused.
2. Include a break for long meetings
Generally, attention spans vary between people, therefore, a video call that is more 30 minutes might call for a break to keep people focused. As such, if you are the organiser of a meeting, to achieve maximum productivity, factor in mini breaks to allow your team members to reenergise and return ready for the next session. If you aren’t the organiser, call the convener of the meeting and recommend short breaks to recharge between the segments.
And when granted breaks, rather than catch up with social media, take a walk around or have some water to re-energise. It is also important to schedule different meetings at intervals to escape the fatigue. Also develop post call practices that allow you to make note of what is required of you before the next meeting.
3. Prepare adequately
Before logging into the online meeting, know the agenda in advance. This will help you to prepare questions which will ensure you remain active during the entire session.
This also helps to stick to the agenda, making the meeting feel more productive. Also, participants get to ask relevant questions and are able to engage the speakers. They also help to end meetings in time. With this in mind, if you’re the convener, only invite the people who really need to be there, this way, the meeting is more productive and you get to complete tasks in the shortest time possible. Also, the fewer the people, the fewer distraction there is, hence quick turnaround times for meetings.
4. Use alternative means of communication
As much as video conferencing has proven to be quick, the fatigue that comes with it can be an important moment to pause and re-evaluate whether virtual meetings are truly necessary. In so doing, team members can seek other alternative ways of communicating such as emails, phone calls or even in-person meetings where possible.
