Fostering Creativity in a Zoom World

Most workplaces aren’t going back to the way things were. Many are diving into the new world of hybrid work, where teams have to decide what, if anything, needs to be done in person.

Which means video meetings are here to stay, whether for everyday collaborations or for periodic occasions like less expensive, more environmentally friendly cross-country workshops.

In order to learn from others’ experiences and glean some insights and advice, we asked Nostos members to weigh in on how they get creative about creativity in an environment driven by video calls and asynchronous chats.

The biggest challenges to overcome? Video energy and forced formality. Creativity is more of an art than a science, and when casual interactions are limited, ad hoc ideation and informal iteration is also limited.

“Zoom creates a pregnant pause — you’re expected to say something valuable if you’re talking.”
- Jason Zabel, Zeus Jones

“We’ve relied heavily on casual, in-person collaboration in the past. We’ve had to adjust our mindset to make those conversations and interactions more intentional.”
- Carolyn Jensen, Foundry

As a species hardwired to observe body language, being trapped in Brady Bunch squares can create a disconcerting feeling of disconnection. For many, the inability to “read the room,” make subconscious adjustments, and draft off each other’s energy has been tough. But for others, video chat has been a democratizer of creativity.

“Zoom has done one favor for all of us. It has killed the group brainstorm.”
- Brad Flowers, Bullhorn

Those who process independently or need time to ideate — or, whose abilities or circumstances may have put them at a disadvantage for in-person creative development — are able to bring their ideas forward more seamlessly.

So what are our creative companies trying and what do they recommend?

1. Be playful about it.

The moments when creativity happens aren’t always on a schedule and they don’t always stem from concentrating harder on the task at hand. Be open to bringing outside interestingness into the conversation, even if you don’t know what the application or outcome will be.

“Find things that are creatively nutritious, and share them even if you don’t know how it relates to a project.”
- Jason Zabel, Zeus Jones

“Bring a sense of play, especially in longer sessions. Using music to set the mood is one specific way.”
- Amanda Zweerink, Zeus Jones

2. Create conditions for casual interactions.

In the same way that companies can set up their physical environments to foster informal interactions — soft seating areas, open kitchen spaces, “hot desks,” etc. — virtual environments can be intentionally designed for similar purposes.

“See Zoom as an informal tool as well as a formal one, or, at the risk of service proliferation, use a space like Discord for the informal spaces that are about fun, creative energy.”
- Eric Frost, Nostos

“Create channels of communication so that the feeling of ‘being in a room’ can foster creativity.”
- Abb-d Choudhury, Driftime

“We began hosting a morning meet-up called Good Morning Foundry (attendance optional), where different employees volunteer to host. This gave our team the opportunity to connect with coworkers daily in a no-stakes, creative, fun way. Depending on the host, meetings could consist of trivia, a creative weather report for all areas where employees were located, news headlines, and more.”
- Carolyn Jensen, Foundry

3. Spend more time on the foundation.

The inability to fall back on passby conversations as a way to move things forward can be a good thing — but it means more intentional preparation is required.

“Creativity still happens through hard work. The best thing you can do is spend more time writing the brief or charter or whatever you call the foundational project document.”
- Brad Flowers, Bullhorn

“Determine which drill / activity / way of working you want to replicate and then set about finding a digital tool that will best help you achieve that. Be mindful of usability issues across hardware and org firewalls.”
- Adam Butler, The Butler Bros

4. Reduce the pressure of meetings.

Setting up a meeting to discuss the seed of an idea can feel nerve-wracking when you’re used to more formal presentations. But if you can intentionally make seed-sharing part of your culture, it can result in stronger connections and creativity.

“We have people show work earlier. This is work that they are often embarrassed by. But, it is easier to do it over video than in person. And, sometimes, one of us will be able to draw a connection that brings the embarrassing idea to life.”
- Brad Flowers, Bullhorn

“Be open to more meetings. Your employees need the connection and it’s a way to check-in.”
- Emily Minner, Bullhorn

5. Experiment with the toolkit.

Think of experimenting with new tools as part of the creative process, instead of a separate activity that takes time away from it.

“There is no one-size-fits all for inspiring creativity. It requires leaders to understand the teams + individuals that work for them, and to have a toolkit of things that are constantly evolving.”
- Amanda Zweerink, Zeus Jones

“Give people the freedom to get off the screen and communicate in ways other than Zoom.”
- Erica Carpenter, Be Found Online

Members’ toolkits include:

• Around (collaborative video)
• Discord (informal hang-outs)
• Figma (collaborative design)
• Google Jamboard (collaborative whiteboard)
• Miro (collaborative whiteboard)
• Slack (organized communication)
• Zoom annotations (collaborative whiteboard)

6. Shift the mindset.

Be open to new ways of working as improvements, not losses.

“Respect that the old ways of generating results don’t apply right now and be open to getting it wrong. Trust the intentions of your teams and acknowledge where the virtual systems are often improvements on our former ways of working.”
- Darryl Condon, HCMA

“We aren’t going back to the way things were. We have to solve the challenges of our new environment so that we can be stronger as an org and work better. We need to lean into the changes and innovate to be better, not just get back to where we were.”
- Eric Frost, Nostos

Overall, know that you’re not alone in trying to figure things out. Change is uncomfortable but we may just be in the midst of a creative renaissance.

If you’d like to learn more about our member community or get connected with some of these smart thinkers, please reach out at hello@nostos.network.