Drsql.link

One of the more interesting things about being a mostly remote worker is that you are rarely in the same room with people, at least people you work with.

For a lot of people, this is a great thing. Call us introverts or at least introvert-adjacent. Other people basically live on human interaction. My people generally call them weird, and we know the feeling is mutual.

As we are all starting to work more remotely (even though not every company is embracing it as strongly as the companies I’ve worked for), there is one part of remote meeting culture that has stood out to me in my last two jobs. Camera on or camera off?

Team Off

Before my previous company, I had rarely used the camera on my computer during work hours. Occasionally we would do candidate interviews and we would turn cameras on so the person didn’t feel even more isolated, but for the most part, never did our cameras come on. Turning the camera on always felt like an intrusion into my space.

Keeping the camera off provides a boundary that lets you feel introverted while still connecting. No worries about people seeing your bad hair, poor fitting shirt, of the trash on the shelf behind you (because you are in the middle of cleaning, naturally!)

These are the pros. The cons? Well, too often you can drift out of a conversation. Something beeps, flashes or moves around (especially concerning when you don’t have a pet!). You can drift off into working on the thing you want to be thinking about instead of the meeting, or even fall asleep. As long as you don’t snore without first hitting mute, no one will notice, especially not in a big meeting.

The biggest con? Well, you may just forget that you are connected and your mic is not muted and do something stupid like start playing a ukelele… maybe singing along. This was forever ago, and this is the first time I am telling ANYONE other than the person who witnessed this (even my wife). To their credit they never said anything. (This is a test to see if anyone I know reads this. I know I would have to say something if so.)

Team On?

When I arrived at a camera-always company (pretty much at least), I hated the concept. What if I forget to turn the camera off if I need to do something I don’t want people to see? What if my nose itches like Seinfeld’s “The Pick” episode?

It is also a bit distracting because I tend to look more at my own self than the other people in a meeting. I especially do this when recording a podcast because I want to make sure I don’t look dumb. But if you can’t see yourself on the camera…what if you forget and do something weird?

But for all the reasons why camera on is a negative… it provided one positive. In moderately sized meetings…it made them feel real. The people I was there with were real people, not just voices. Seeing people’s faces helps you understand what they are thinking more than even their words. You can tell when someone wants to say something so there is less of people talking over each other.

One more confession? My worst nightmare (yes worse than singing and playing out of tune on an open mic) is this. Dying off camera. I have this weird concern that my camera is off and my mic is muted and I start to have a major medical issue. I can’t reach the mic or camera and as I fade away…I can hear people on the other end saying “Louis, have you left the meeting? Guess he went to the restroom.” Nope, on my way somewhere else.

So, on or off?

Yes. And no. A lot depends on what the person speaking needs from the audience.

Many larger meetings, where people are just sharing information, don’t really need a camera. When you are something like 1 of 100 people or more in a meeting, it just feels awkward to possibly be watched. Maybe when you are asking/answering a question, because at this point in time you do need to exhibit a connection with the group, but other than that, to me it feels intrusive.

The downside is that as the presenter, you have no idea if people are paying attention or not. Where this gets tricky is when you need feedback. Seeing the expression on the faces of your audience is worth its weight in something valuable.

However, anytime that there is a conversation going on, you really need to feel that people are paying attention. Being able to see the reactions of the people on a call is important because it helps you to feel you are in a room with people. If you are teaching a class (or giving a presentation at a conference), the camera can really help you see if people are following along. (And especially tell you if any jokes you have put in there have landed. Trying to be even a bit funny with no perceptible audience is hard… just try to record a podcast episode by yourself sometime!

Finally, meetings with just a few people, one-on-one meetings/catchups with your team members. When you aren’t sharing a screen filled with code then you probably should see a face. Sure it means you can’t eat, play a video game, play with your dog, or clean your office; all while wearing a stained shirt and crazy hair… or maybe you can… Might as well be yourself.

Own your distractions

While turning the camera on tends to help with distractions, there are distractions that are more okay than others. These are distractions outside of your control.

I have had so many meetings where kids are being goofy behind a parent and not once has it bothered me as much as it bothered the parent. While there is clearly a limit, kids will be kids (and what kid doesn’t like to see themselves dancing around in a blurred out background?) Or a jealous dog that wants attention?

If you are that person with distractions though, understand that not everyone is as easy as I.

Summary

As much as I generally love the ability to not be seen during meetings, seeing another human’s face when your a talking to them can really help you feel a connection that voice only does not. Consider using your camera as often as you can, just make sure whatever you do, say, or sing on camera is what you want to share. And be glad your camera doesn’t roam around as easy as your microphone.