Presence Training

Zoom meetings and other virtual solutions have pretty much become the norm nowadays. More and more people find the only solution to continue work from home, and this is a way for them to stay connected. 

But this change in the way you conduct meetings may seem hard to adjust to. A virtual environment is nothing like meeting people face to face, and doing presentations online may not be your strong trait. To gain some confidence, you can adopt a few tactics: 

• Do a lot of practice in front of the camera – how do people get better at something? Well, they practice and then practice some more. You cannot expect to feel good about something if you haven’t practised it enough. In the case of doing online meetings, you don’t even necessarily need to practice with real people. You can ‘cheat’ a little by practising just in front of a camera. You will then feel more comfortable in a real online environment when the time comes. 

• Preparation is key – perhaps the best way to feel confident in an online meeting is to prepare yourself for it. Know what topic you will be discussing, what data is needed, what other people may need of you. And if you are only asked to observe, it is best to prepare some actionable points, which you can add to the meeting when an opening arises. Basically, the better prepared you are, the more confidence you will feel and less stress and anxiety about it. This is a great tip that works great for any public speaking performance, but it translates well into online meetings as well. 

• Your appearance matters – most people usually tie their confidence in the way they look. That is also true in the virtual world, even though you are only visible from the torso up. Consider what physical features of yourself you feel are more frustrating and proactively address them. For instance, if you feel like your skin doesn’t look good on camera, employ some form of skincare regimen. Whatever it is, you can actively make yourself look better and thus gain some of that much needed sweet confidence in front of the camera. 

• Become more familiar with technology – another way to be more comfortable during online meetings and presentations lies with increasing your knowledge of the technology used. Taking the time to learn all about the new platform and hardware till you are comfortable with it to the point where it doesn’t bother you. When you are unsure of the means of online meetings, you are losing focus and worrying extra about it, which can be problematic in many ways. 

• Speak up – sometimes you have an idea of what you will say in your head. And then, the time never comes. The meeting ends, and you have not shared your ideas. Your goal should be to speak up, as this is going to boost your confidence. You may think that keeping it to yourself is the way to go, but in the end, you will just hate yourself for keeping quiet. Find the right phrases to speak up and wait for the right moment. Don’t just interrupt people mid-sentence, as that is just rude. ‘That concerns me a little’, ‘I have a question about ….’, ‘I have to say’ are all good phrases to use and get some attention. 

These are all working tips to boost your confidence in online meetings. Use them all and you will see that they have a positive effect. 

© Presence Training