Are you ZOOMED Out? Video Meeting Fatigue is Real

Take a rest. A field that is rested gives a beautiful crop

OVID

For these past few months, I’ve heard many complaints about how draining it is to work via video chat all day.  Why is this so?   It may be that it is harder to focus when looking at multiple people on a screen with interesting backgrounds, bookshelves, and pets.  Or side-eying our spouse slither snake-like across the floor to grab their car keys. Or my cousin on a Zoom school session with her young son, suddenly dropped out of sight when her chair fell apart.  She then army-crawled out of the room and off camera.  Distractions are everywhere.

Six months into this pandemic, with no end in sight, we need solutions to preserve ourselves and our dignity in our new Zoom-oriented world:

1. Default to Opt-Out
   1. Avoid video when you don’t know the person well — staring into another’s eyes is far too intimate.
   2. Don’t feel obliged to always join social video calls, especially after a long day of staring at your computer for work.
   3. If you can turn your camera off, try doing hip stretches (Pigeon) on a yoga mat or stand on one leg (Tree) at your desk.
   4. Hide your own face from your view so you don’t look at yourself
2. Focus on one priority at a time. There is no such thing as multitasking, it’s called task-switching and it is exhausting. Multitaskers have a far worse memory and tend to lose executive control.
3. Spice it up. If you’re organizing a call, can you get the CEO or VIP to Zoom Bomb a routine meeting?  I’m teaching a graduate course and arranging a few VIPs to jump into our class.

 No matter your circumstances, default to self-compassion.  We are living during an extremely difficult time.  No one is at their best.  Go easy on yourself.

Things I’ve come across that may help:

• A podcast on Nutrition 411 I did a while ago on the difference between emotional eating and food addiction
• Best breakup song EVER!  Must see the visuals.  I have not had a breakup in decades, but if i did, I would turn to this song on repeat.   Happy by Madeline Clark  – Thanks Heather G.
• Why we don’t have good science and may be confused on what to be eating:  The Problem with Poodle Science Metaphor