Whether you’re diligently taking notes from the presentation, catching up on some overdue emails or sneakily chatting with your work bestie about where to go for happy hour, the sound of your typing is distracting.

It’s not only distracting everyone else in the meeting (because your laptop’s internal microphone is inches away from your keyboard), it’s also preventing you from devoting your full attention to the meeting or the person speaking. So either use a headset or pick up your notebook and pen to take meeting notes.

Adjust your work set up so that you face a window or are exposed to plenty of light. And make sure your background is professional and work appropriate. You will also want to make sure you are in a quiet, private room.  Although open seating workspaces and coffee shops are great for meetings and getting work done, they are not appropriate for a virtual meeting setting.

A few other general ideas to think about when getting set up for a virtual meeting:

• Excessive background noise is a major distraction when it is your turn to speak or you want to ask a question.
• Make sure to let co-workers or family members that you are unavailable during the meeting time – just as you would be if you were in person at the meeting.
• Try to avoid having random passers-by or super cute pets or children in the background that could be distracting.
• You should also remove any other noisy distractions. While kids and pets may be adorable and you love them to pieces, other virtual attendees won’t like having to talk over a screaming child or barking dog.

Familiarize yourself with Zoom (the webinar platform that will be used for most WEW Virtual Meetings)

Here’s a few videos and links to get you started.

There’s nothing more frustrating than hearing that alien echo noise from conflicting microphones. Save everyone from the ear-splitting madness by joining the meeting while on mute.

If you’re working in an open-office layout, a noisy cafe, or anywhere that has a lot of background noise, make sure to keep your microphone muted when you’re not speaking so it gives other participants the ability to chime in and share their thoughts without distraction.

If possible please be considerate of other attendees and find a quiet private space to attend the meeting.

First of all, when you enter a small meeting (around two to five people) announce yourself when you join. It’s awkward to hear the someone-just-joined ding followed by silence. When you hop on the meeting, introduce yourself and say hi — just make sure not to interrupt someone mid-sentence.

Secondly, don’t be afraid to speak loudly during a virtual meeting. Attendees will appreciate being able to hear you without having to strain their ears.

Due to the number of time zones attendees may be from, we are aware that many virtual meetings will be scheduled during someone’s breakfast, lunch or dinner time.  Although the majority of our in-person meetings are scheduled around food, there is something slightly different about eating in front of a video screen.

Please be aware of what you may be eating as no one wants to hear someone slurp their soup or see someone eat with their mouth open.  Make sure you know how to use your mute button properly and pay attention to your food choices.

This is typically the number one complaint (over barking dogs in the background) that annoys virtual meeting attendees the most. 

It may be tempting to check your inbox or carry on a side conversation during a dull moment in a meeting, but don’t do it!  You might miss out on key information or an opportunity to give input.  If you’re using your webcam, use attentive body language — sit up straight, don’t make big extraneous movements, and don’t let your eyes wander too much.

We understand that things happen and emergency situations come up that must be dealt with, but because the virtual meeting space is limited there is typocally a number of other participants who would love to be in attendance.  We want to make sure all attendees are respectful of the other attendees, faciliator(s) and presenters and participate in the virtual space as you would in person.