We all know that active listening is the key to being a great communicator. But when you aren’t face to face, and have to rely on tools like email, chat, and webcams this can get tricky. After all, can you “listen” to an email? Yes you can, and you know it. Have you ever read a text message or email, and thought, “Man, she sounds ticked off.” Well she didn’t “sound” … [Read more...]
Setting Up Guardrails For Working Remotely
Whether you’re a leader with a title or just someone working remotely trying to do your best, odds are you have a hard time disconnecting from your work. Remote workers, especially those who are new to it (which is an LOT of us since March), report that their biggest challenge is constantly being sucked into work-related emails, text messages and projects when they should be … [Read more...]
Why Technology Fatigue Sets in So Fast
When we work remotely, technology is our lifeline. You’d think we’d be grateful for the ability to see each other when we’re not in the same office, or send our written messages around the world at the speed of light. Instead we tell anyone who’ll listen that the volume of email is interfering with our work. Most of us have only been using Zoom for three or four months, and … [Read more...]
The Laptop Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
Maybe you’re too young to remember when you got your first laptop computer. (Mine was in 1998 and it weighed about 5 pounds that felt more like 20.) Maybe you’ve never been without one for work. As an article in The Atlantic points out, what seemed like a good idea at the time really began the erosion of work/life balance that smart phones have continued. Cast your mind back … [Read more...]
How to Make That Meeting an Email Instead
Ah, the wittiness of the internet. How many memes, pictures and snarky comments have you seen from people complaining that the latest assault on their precious time was “a meeting that could have been an email"? Especially when we work remotely, it’s easy to complain about the time spent in unproductive meetings. I feel your pain but here’s a question for you: Exactly what … [Read more...]