My schedule is full of Zoom meetings. Each has its own flavor. None is to be dreaded. Three years ago, when I last did the A to Z Challenge, I was just getting used to Zoom. It felt like a poor substitute for in-person meetings.
Many people still feel that way, but I no longer think of Zoom meetings as “less than.” Maybe the dose of contact I need is less than other people’s. I used to prefer energy treatments to massage.
Feeling People’s Energy on Zoom
I can still feel people’s spirit and energy via Zoom, just as I can over the phone. Yesterday, I came home tired from a day of crowded lectures at a conference. I enjoyed the lectures, but still felt drained by being around people all day.
I rushed home to log on to a Zoom coworking session with a high-energy book coach. The coach answered our questions, and then we settled down to write together in silence. Between the positive energy of the coach (and the group) and the ability to work on my memoir, I felt better after the Zoom call ended.
Co-regulation and Calming
I no longer felt the jagged edges of too much caffeine. I felt smoothed out and happy. For me, Zoom meetings work as well as in-person meetings for co-regulating and calming my nervous system.
I think that’s one of the reasons I enjoy facilitating writing groups online. It takes a different way to be vigilant to the group dynamics, but if everyone’s camera is on, I get a lot of information from facial expression, posture, and voice tone.
Normalization of Virtual Meetings
The normalization of Zoom meetings has been a silver lining for me from the shutdown of the Covid pandemic. I get to attend meetings from the comfort of my home, and I’ve been able to open my writing group to people in other time zones.
Zoom meetings are another tool in my toolbox. Micro-transformations add up to a big one.
I’m grateful for Zoom sessions, too. Especially now that I have retired, it is good to be able to attend a lecture or a conference without having to travel. And if I want to check out or slip away, I can do so without disturbing anyone or hurting their feelings. They aren’t a substitute for face-to-face communication, but as you put it well, they’re “another tool in the toolbox.” And yes, they are calming, and one can feel people’s energy without getting drained by too much of it.
And, Z! Hooray!
-J
I second your feelings about Zoom meetings and share the experience of your writing group. I guess I would like more sometimes too – I am not keen on blurred backgrounds, especially the glitches around people’s faces which distract. Seeing the environment where a person is zooming from is as contributive to the experience as seeing their expressions. Whem my sister in Nova Scotia talk, she carries me around to show me her house, humming birds on her verandah etc. In a writing group it is like a special (through writing) portal which is the main point and way we are getting to know each other so anything else is a bonus.
Congratulations on completing the A to Z – I still have some posts to catch up on but it was a fascinating description of a process of change…