Online One on One Meetings
A lot of things might be blocking one on one communication
One on ones are always challenging, but they get more difficult when you are remote. One on one meetings are done with colleagues, managers, direct reports, partners, customers, skip level, etc. I will share a few best practices for how to make them more effective online.
We are all remote today so meeting can be tiring. If you keep the two following principles in mind, then you will have more human centered online meetings:
Make eye contact as much as possible
Focus on work best done in real time
Consider the priorities for a one on one:
Strengthen your relationship
Align on top priorities
Align on approaches to situations
Clarify work being done
Share sensitive information
Keeping screen sharing to a minimum will help make your one on ones feel more personal. Here are some reasons to share your screen:
Showing a work in progress document you aren’t ready to share access to
Practicing a presentation
Sharing knowledge on how to use a piece of software.
Be sure to switch back to face to face view once you complete the screen sharing segment! A common pitfall is to leave your screen sharing on for the rest of the meeting. This leads to added Zoom fatigue from staring at a document on a screen rather than looking at a human face. It also increases the innate barrier created between you and your one on one created by using video instead of being in person.
One note on the relationship. Whatever your current working relationship is will not last forever, but your relationship can. Some of my closest friends are former managers.
Value your work relationships beyond your immediate situation. They can become life long friends.
A few tips on strengthening your relationship.
Listen more than you talk
Seek first to understand what is going on in their world
Look for long term alignment around common goals
Find ways to support them in their long term goals
Be as honest as you can about your hopes and dreams.
Recruit them to be a supporter
I hope todays tips on making a one on one online less stressful helps and maybe even make them the best parts of your week.
This concludes this series where I covered how to have human centered online meetings.
