Video killed the radio star

It’s great to see people’s faces. I’m a big fan of seeing someone’s smile and looking a person in the eye. And during the pandemic, most of us are home, looking at classmates and colleagues on video. And by half way through the day I am just exhausted. Depleted. Stupid tired. Recently a bunch of articles came out explaining the science behind why video calls (and other factors) are draining us faster than usual. There is this National Geographic article which is just one of many that surfaced. The science and observations in these articles elicited a “well duh” from my kids when I shared what I learned. So, based on this well duh I’m going to make some changes. Here’s what I’m going to try.

• Embrace audio and video. I will only be on video calls if absolutely necessary, and make choices about just doing audio. I will also norm with colleagues so they know I am cool if they want to listen not be seen.

• Get more sleep. I have been waking up way too early. And then I’m sleepy and loopy after lunch. I was so ragged one day I blocked my schedule for 1 hour, and took a power nap for 30 minutes. It was super helpful and I was able to ride that second wind through. Sleep is more important than ever.

• Schedule more time to think. One of the things that really exhausts me is being in back to back meetings. It’s killer. I find without time to reflect, focus and think, I’m unable to do even simple tasks.

I hope everyone is well and finding their own way as you juggle and try to be productive. Would love to hear what you’ve tried!