The Guide to Effective Communication During Virtual Meetings
Tips #3 Improve your tone
Have you ever been in a situation when what you say does not match how you say it? How often have you been able to convey the exact message to the listener? Or perhaps, you keep running out of words whenever you’d want to say something more important.
We’ve all been there. It’s one of the typical remote challenges we face when working with a remote team.
At first, there’s a famous saying that effective communication is all about a number game? For example, here’s what research has looked into the three elements — if there were number numbers associated with the body language and non-verbal communication, they would be 7, 38, and 55.
The 7–38–55 rule is a concept concerning the communication of emotions. The rule states that 7 percent of meaning is communicated through spoken word, 38 percent through tone of voice, and 55 percent through body language. It was developed by psychology professor Albert Mehrabian at the University of California, Los Angeles, who laid out the concept in his 1971 book Silent Messages (1971).
As Psychology Today points out, the history behind this often quoted, and equally often misunderstood magic set of percentages is often unknown. And even Mehrabian agrees that the formula was created for a specific context — when the nonverbal channel and the verbal channel are in-congruent (not matching).
However, it’s still “inaccurate to claim that this formula is absolute and applies to every situation.” There’s no denying the power of body language — and tone of voice — in our communications as they are still more valuable in the present context.
But you might wonder, where does this information fit in all in our Virtual Communication tips?
In most of our business communications, whether on-site or remotely, we heavily rely on our voice and the words we use along with our body language. Our ultimate goal is to make sure our message or information is properly channelized through any medium.
You might have noticed that even a video conference isn’t a perfect substitute compared to in-person communication. But, it’s something that most of today’s companies are bound to, which has increased even more lately. If you’ve noticed people having trouble during face-to-face meetings, you’ll find it even more challenging during the virtual meeting.
In some cases, even an excellent communicator in real-life might feel a bit challenging during those virtual gatherings. Their in-person spontaneity in conversations might not work well here.
It’s because we’re more concerned about what information to convey and whether those important information gets adequately communicated or not. On the back of your mind, we do subconsciously fear the risk of getting that information lost in the cyberspace.
Even if you’re listening properly, it might not be sufficient to get the most out of the conversations. For example, if you’re listening without looking for clues in nonverbal channels, you’re more likely to misinterpret what the speaker is trying to convey, and your chances of finding common ground diminish.
The good news is that there are tons of tips to improve your tone in virtual communications, get your points effectively, accurately, and without confusion or mishaps.
1. No Multitask, Please!
As technology strides and employees try to juggle more than they’ve ever done before, multitasking is a natural habit to slip into for many people. And multitasking isn’t always helpful as we might think.
According to research summarized by the American Psychological Association, shifting between tasks can cost you up to 40 percent of productive time. You may feel like you’re getting more done, but you probably aren’t. You’re just getting it done differently — and probably not the best one.
It’s true, multitasking is tempting, but it’s also bad for you. The science is apparent that you can’t do two things simultaneously, and you are just switching your tasks. Our brain chooses which information to process. The moment you begin to multitask, your mind will perform worse than how it performs during a single job.
If you’re still not convinced that multitasking isn’t helping you, feel free to say ouch now!
1. It makes you less productive
2. It makes you less effective
3. It increases your stress and anxiety
4. It lowers your IQ
.and even more
Next time you are urged to multitask, make sure there are no distracting elements around your peripheral vision. Listen actively. Maintain your eye contact throughout the meeting.
Try maximizing your computer windows to hide distractions, and only keep essential notes or information in front of your screen. It’s better to turn off email pop-ups or any pending update notifications. If possible, keep your smartphone out of reach, or just set your phone to do-not-disturb mode. This helps you both in your home or office setup.
But if you’re in your office and need the least distractions as possible, leave your desk and carry your headphones to find your way to your conference room.
2. Check Your Infrastructure
Even if you have scheduled the meeting at the best time possible and your teammates are in perfect sync to communicate, your ideas and strategies won’t play out well, given that your piece of hardware and software infrastructure start misbehaving all of a sudden.
In a country where frequent electric cut-offs are rather a norm, you are bound to expect that any time. If an inverter/generator is what you can afford comfortably, surely opt for that one. Otherwise, a cellphone with a 3G or 4G service can be the best alternative to compensate for the WiFi router relying on electricity. But make sure you always have your cell is charged enough.
Besides, your headphones — wired or wireless headset and other necessary hardware should function correctly, and you always have the time to check that out before the meetings.
And it’s better to use a plain background to minimize the distractions. So facing yourself against the plain wall or just using some software to blur your background also an option that you could try out.
3. Improve your Tone
When we talk about Email and IM, Conference calls, or Virtual Meetings, a common denominator that applies to all is the tone, as it applies to both written and voice communication.
In most business situations, a tone will vary and sound in a wide array of adjectives, such as:
1. Positive
2. Enthusiastic
3. Confident
4. Courteous
5. Self-Assertive
6. Friendly
7. Depressed
9. Demeaning
10. Formal
How you sound to others is a crucial aspect of the conversation. As discussed earlier, it reflects 38% of the message in face-to-face communication. Over the phone, it increases up to a staggering 70–90%. Even an emphasis on a specific word could make a great deal of difference in our conversation.
Let’s see how different tone results in a different interpretation.
Try to say these phrases out loud with an emphasis on different words each time. Think of how it changes the statement:
I love my dog.
I LOVE my dog.
I love MY dog.
I love my dog.
I love my DOG.
Hopefully, you can see how the tone changes the interpretation differently of what’s being said even though they’re the same words.
Your non-verbal cues may differ based on your culture, gender, education, thinking paradigm, physical condition, economics, and environment. This is why your non-verbal communications may be misunderstood and might be interpreted differently.
Most non-native speakers have to deal with this problem when they are communicating with their foreign counterparts.
From my personal experiences, I could also tell that the differences in my tone have relayed the interpretation differently on numerous occasions. At times, I do feel self-assured that they’ve probably got what I wanted to tell them; however, it’s not always the case. They usually reach back to me immediately through IM for further justification/explanation of the point that I’d referred to during the meeting.
And sadly, I have to spend additional time writing down the boring extended interpretations in my emails again, highlighting those points.
It’s worth remembering that not all virtual team members will interpret the cues in the same way, so it’s always the best option to immediately send a written note or an email, mainly when significant points are discussed.
Make most of your voice and your vocal channel by considering these factors in your tone — word stress, sentence stress, the right pace, pauses, pitch, intonation, and rhythm.
4. Body Language
We spent some time discussing the importance of tone in non-verbal communications, but body language is something that translates even louder( i.e., 55 %).
Your body language speaks a lot about you even when you’re meeting people virtually.
Your body language in non-verbal communications is a high indicator of the level of engagement and your priority. Your physical presence, postures, and gestures, eye contact all increase your ability to connect with your clients or colleagues and helps to build or reinforce trust and communicate more efficiently.
First and foremost, your posture!.
Think of yourself as a bodybuilder. Even if you don’t have those muscles to back you up, at least have those confidence to sit tall like them. You want your body to tell others that others do not get intimidated by anyone in the room, but instead, you’re a confident professional.
Use your facial expressions and your gestures to describe appropriately, and emphasize your points. Give them feedback and support by nodding or just a simple thumb up or thumb down. Only that little non-verbal body cues helps a lot to connect with speakers and our listeners.
Maintaining an appropriate eye-contact is just as much as, if not even more important, for your listeners. Make an active/engaging eye-contact and balance looking at the faces of the others, looking into the camera lens (so that others can see your eyes). Try and appear self-assured, positive, and happy.
Especially, put a smile on your voice, and make sure your smile reaches your eyes. As the science speaks, smiling boosts some important body hormones such as serotonin (happiness chemical) and dopamine(pleasure/need chemical). So, next time when you forgot to smile, remember your “hormones”.
And also, don’t forget to dress up appropriately. Set the stage properly, position your camera, and spacing, which allows others to view your torso and arms. You want to make sure you make a lasting digital impression by presenting the total package inside of you.
Use your body language attribute to bring “The Rockstar” inside out of you!
5. Keep it Professional
You often hear about how it is essential to be professional at work. In general, communication in our workplace has become somewhat tricky. We are surrounded by the world of smartphones, quite often engaging in social platforms by sending text messages full of emojis. On the other hand, we’re also handling our daily professional office works and emails preserving the proper corporate etiquette. This way, we’re more prone to fickle around with both of these approaches.
In many cases, millennials are more likely to drive themselves into these situations as they are well acquainted with informal communication practices outside of an 8-hour professional zone.
At work, many companies offer an instant messaging platform designed to facilitate quick conversations, sending them emoji’s and funny gifs, which is refreshing at times. But make sure to exclude these behaviors and actions at your formal meetings. It’s okay to be friendly and relaxed. Still, you don’t want to accidentally go overboard and start offending or disrespecting the other person with some colloquialisms coming off of the streets.
Be a person of your character. Carry yourself with decency and integrity, and as a rule of thumb, it’s best to maintain a sense of professionalism in all work conversations — in your emails, over your phone with your colleagues, and unquestionably during your virtual meetings.
6. Asking Questions
Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers — Voltaire
Are you one of those people who are hesitant to ask questions during the meetings? Maybe, even after listening to some thought-provoking statements? Don’t worry. Most people fall into that one.
In many cases, the speakers actually love to hear good questions from the audience. You’d have probably noticed that there’s a room for every meeting for the Q/A round. You might not want to deal with it directly so you can have the option to reach out individually. Some features even enable you to post your queries anonymously.
Remember, asking pertinent questions at business meetings is an indication that you’re truly interested. But make sure you’re genuinely asking to get better perspectives and fuel some insights. So it makes sense to have some good research beforehand. Don’t just ask to toss out who is the toughest or smartest person in the room.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a list of best questions you would want to ask; it’s actually about the art of asking questions to assist one another to shed light upon facts, queries, or just any curiosity that the participants would like to know.
It’s always a great practice to follow these forms of questions:
- Echo — Repetition of the content words with rising intonation
A: I have signed a contract.
B: Contract?
2. Paraphrase — Restatement in the form of a question
A: Do you mean to say you had an agreement?
3. Open — Seeking for opinions or explanations.
A: What sort of points were discussed in the agreement?
4. Closed — When the answer is short and can be completed with yes/no answers
A: Do you plan to reread your agreement papers?
Also, before your meeting, outline your information goals and a sequence of related questions to help you follow the conversation and cue your notes. When the time comes, you can shoot up your queries straight at the point and know your answers better.
Even if the speaker seems too scripted or perhaps if the meeting is muddled in minutiae, there’s no way that anybody would stop you from asking questions.
This way, you will better condition your questioning strategy, giving you the confidence to raise your hand voice, and even save your time.
Final Thoughts about Virtual Communication Etiquette
Whether your company or your institution just pushed into the remote business as a result of COVID-19 or maybe you’d already started following these protocols way before, we all know that virtual meetings are a new reality for many modern businesses today.
Virtual communication etiquette is not only about remote communication; it’s more about cultivating effective relationships.
With virtual team dynamics and challenges evolving tremendously over the years, one should understand that virtual relationship is a perfect tool to cultivate a thriving corporate culture across the organizations globally.
Not only does it help improve interpersonal relationships within your virtual team, but it also enables you to cultivate your soft skills — emotional intelligence, self-regulation, self-motivation, awareness, and confidence on both individual and organizational levels.
Thank you for getting along this far. I want to leave you with a discussion about how you conduct your meetings in a virtual environment effectively.
