Working with distributed groups is a bit like learning to play golf. You're going to make mistakes, use a lot of 4-letter words, and start drinking early in the day. Ok, so let's just stick with the mistakes and frustration part for the purpose of this post.
Hearing about others' mistakes can be entertaining ... but can also help you avoid looking like a fool. With that in mind I've put together a list of 6 ways to look like a fool at a distance while working remotely or working with remote teams. Some of these things have happened to me and some are from friends or colleagues:
1) Leaving personal IM on in an online meeting - So you're getting ready to present to the global marketing team on Q1 results and your significant other alerts you to this evening's plans. You've already begun screen sharing in your online meeting so everyone gets to read what you have on tap for Friday night. I've heard several versions of this story that I'm not comfortable publishing but you get the idea. Turn off notifications for IM, email, and twitter before you start presenting online.
2) Talking to yourself on mute - I have a love/hate relationship with my mute button. When I press it I can eat lunch or talk to officemates but I always forget to unmute myself before I begin talking. It usually takes 30 seconds before I realize that I'm talking to myself. The only way I've found to avoid this issue is to leave my finger on the mute button after I press it or put a post it up on my computer that says "unmute" after I press the button.
3) Jumping into an unanticipated Skype video call - At about 10 AM you roll out of bed to start the day and find out that a key client would like to meet via Skype in 5 minutes. You jump on the call only to find that your client would like to use video and you're wearing a t-shirt that says Beer Crawl '02 and facial hair that resembles Chewbacca's. If you're working with a web cam, always keep a nice shirt handy (you can keep the Beer Crawl shorts on if you want).
4) Yanking the phone off the hook - A lot of remote workers stand with headsets when presenting in a meeting. It makes sense except when you accidentally jar the handset and hang up on the call. This is especially frustrating in a Webinar when the other speakers have to pick up the slack. High tech tip...use a rubber band to anchor down your handset to the base.
5) Pointing at the screen - I'm stealing a bit from Peter Cohan (http://www.secondderivative.com/) on this one. Sometimes we point at the screen when we meet in person. I've walked by people presenting virtually while pointing at their computer screen and saying "if you look here." It's natural but mouse when presenting online, use annotation tools or move the mouse.
6) Presenting in or near the bathroom - Some home office configurations can leave your desk far too close to the bathroom. Nothing ruins your presentation momentum like a healthy flush of the toilet. This will also leave others on the call wondering if you're in fact presenting from the toilet. If you can, keep your office away from the bathroom door. If you can't, at least mute your phone.
I hope these stories will help you avoid some common mistakes. At the very least, these should be entertaining.
Anyone feel like embarrassing themselves and sharing a workshifting moron story?
Photo by: msmail
