Turn off your camera

I’m in a lot of meetings every week.

The day-in-and-day-out of another video call has been taking a huge toll on me for years now.

It’s not the number of calls, or the substance of the calls, it’s the damn camera.

The cognitive load of having to sit at my desk, stare into my camera, and look at people’s faces is just too much.

We’re a remote company — and have been for almost 10 years now — but back in the day these calls happened via phone or audio only.

Yet since COVID, people often expect those calls to be over video.

And I’m over it.

Personally, I like to pace when I talk to someone, I like to walk around my office or home, or take a walk outside if it’s going to be a long call.

I find that I can think more clearly without the distraction of a computer screen.

For much of this year, I’ve been turning my camera off for calls and have encouraged other people on my team to do so.

The reception has been great and I’ve heard from others that they have more productive meetings with their camera off, too.

Video on shouldn’t be the rule. Next time you’re on a video call, turn it into an audio call by turning off your camera and inviting others to do the same.