Zoom Meetings - Zoom in, Zoom out days for some!

 

Zoom in, Zoom out days for some!

That Covid-19 pandemic has changed our lifestyles sounds hackneyed now. It is so obvious, that the less said the better it is. It has undeniably transformed everyone’s work-life too and that is also very evident.

Though restaurants, stores, malls, government offices, and factories have partially or completely opened for in-person business following the weakening of the second wave, educational institutions, and many corporate offices are delaying opening up to safeguard the health of their employees. Of course, this way they are also saving on maintenance and running expenses besides travel allowance, medical reimbursements, and other perks being paid to the employees.

Earlier, video-conferences were few and enjoyed a spot of respect. Not any more! In the work from home (WFH) scenario, suddenly group cam and chat applications like Zoom and Google Meet/Hangout, etc. have become the channels of communication. They are the normal modes of working. Whether on phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop, even little children are becoming experts in following the routine. It is not long before like Google, Zoom would cease to be a proper noun and change into a common noun or even a verb. Teachers and students follow the whole day time-table on Zoom while executives tumble into one zoom meeting after the other. What to talk of education and work, family get-togethers and weddings are also being held on Zoom.

Photo: Homegrown.co.in

According to https://thebestschools.org/magazine

At the beginning of the pandemic, Zoom calls jumped astronomically, increasing from 10 million to 300 million each day. Microsoft Teams, a comparable platform, saw similar surges, jumping from 31 to 75 million daily calls.

In addition to Netflix, Hotstar, and Amazon Prime, Zoom creators also must be gloating over this brainwave of a clever mind as money pours into their bank accounts.

I for one, had never tried it till the quarantine period came. Even after two summers, I remain among those to whom somebody has to send a link so that I click on it and see myself on the screen; that is all. I do not pretend to know how Zoom works or how it should be operated. I prefer audio phone calls or even emails where communication is precise.

In my first ever Zoom meeting, that too with the extended family, after a long time of Can you hear me/We can’t see you/where is so and so, one older cousin took up 35 minutes trying to recognize everyone and ‘Oh, how long it has been since I saw you!” Then the logging out goodbyes and we must do it again soon took a long time and some of us clicking wrong icons and muttering things not meant to be heard by the others was tiresome.

The serious Zoomers, if I may call them so, insist on following the protocol and are well-prepared. They not only look professional, but they also speak professionalize. They would send a list of issues to be discussed, participants and time slots allowed for everyone, questions, etc. beforehand so that everyone is prepared. Their meetings are short and they can get a lot done during such remote meetings.

Yet unfortunately all the meetings are not like that. Most of the people I know and who are working from home, complain that there is little respect for others’ time, regular audio calls are changed to video calls without much notice at any time of the day and late into the night because everybody just assumes that you are stuck in the house and would be happy to have a discussion any time within the 24 hour period.

One painful result of too much online interaction is Zoom fatigue i.e. tiredness, the strain on eyes, and lack of concentration due to long periods of exposure to blue light radiation or generally feeling tired after sitting for many hours. An eye doctor suggested taking breaks from the screen, getting up to stretch, or pick up a snack.

Naturally, there has been any number of Zoom fails with people in the last one and a half year. Canadian politician William Amos who represents Pontiac in Quebec was seen peeing during virtual video parliamentary proceedings. Last month, he had appeared naked on a video call with colleagues. He was seen only by co-workers and the staff during the video, but naturally, his photo showing him standing naked between the Quebec and Canadian flags near a desk was leaked and circulated.

Yet, some people prefer these remote meetings. You do not have to get up early, cook and pack lunch, dress up and commute to and from the office. You can lounge on the sofa in your four-day-old sweatshirt, drink whisky from a coffee mug, chop vegetables on the side or finish your child’s homework. As long as you thank the participants and wave a bye in the end, they know you attended the meeting. That is important for a peaceful existence in the Zoom world. Travel for work is zero so there are no hotel stays, food and luggage issues nor anxiety about train journeys and flights. You are at home and do things at your pace.

The background for the video calls has come to be considered important too. You can put a virtual image in the background for the online meeting and surprise your teammates. It also removes any kind of stress one might experience about how your room looks.

Or else, you can upscale things- dress up nicely and be seen with well-done hair and makeup, drinking coffee from a stylish mug, while everyone else is at the rock bottom of their ego/image chart in their crumpled clothes and finishing their food, the dog pulling on the chair to go out, kids bawling for food or attention, somebody yelling or a member of the family in his underpants, singing and dancing like in a cameo role! Oh, you sure can have a great time enjoying somebody else’s misery.

If you are the creative sort you can stay in your leisure attire, and only change your top garment, drink vodka from a bottle labeled synthetic vinegar and make notes on the houses of people to make it more entertaining for yourself.

And yes, mute your mic if you plan to vent out steam by yelling/screaming/ cursing/attending to the activities happening elsewhere in the house and it would be disgusting to take a call while sitting in the toilet.

One good thing is, now the happy hour is also followed on Zoom.

                                                                                       - Anupama S Mani