3-D Personality on a Flat Screen

3-D Personality on a Flat Screen

Ever since we discussed remote communication in our book in 2008, people have asked how they can be more effective remotely. There have been many answers. Giant steps forward are now on the horizon.

We have used remote communications for most of our 30 years in business. Today, our large global clientele make videoconferencing skills essential to meeting our clients needs. We use it and we teach it.

We recently completed our first pilot of a virtual coaching workshop with participants videoconferencing from Europe, the Middle East, Asia, South America, and the US. The “3-D Personality on a Flat Screen” workshop focuses on how to significantly improve effectiveness when using remote communication. It is amazing to see how we can successfully, personally coach people around the world.  We use our online video development along with leading-edge videoconferencing techniques to improve effectiveness and productivity.

There is no longer enough time or money for national or global companies to fly to distant locations or frequently gather dispersed teams into one place. “I prefer to meet in person.” is frequently the response we hear when talking about the use of videoconferencing to connect with others. Audio conferences are often the first line of defense. A number of people spend 50% or more of their day on audio-conferences. It’s not working very well, is it? Face-to-face is no longer an option for many global teams. Audio-conferences have limited success.

What are the realities of audio conferencing?

• Humans are poor auditory learners.
• Body language is an important part of communication.
• Part of how we “hear” people is through lip reading (need a visual of the face).
• Multi-tasking is what most people do when on an audio-conference.

Many people are afraid of being on video… but, younger workers are  using video frequently and are good at it.

• The current way most people communicate globally is not working
• Cameras, cost, and connection technology are changing very rapidly for the better.
• The future belongs to those who move outside their comfort zones to grow

If you could become more comfortable and significantly more effective using videoconferencing what could that do in terms of saving time and travel?  What if people did not have to travel to learn how to be more effective remotely? Those are the questions we asked.

We have offered in-person workshops in the past on how to be more effective remotely. To maintain integrity, I decided we need to deliver remote skills using remote skills. Can it be done effectively? That was the next question. We now know the answer is “yes”.