Mute for a Better Meeting

You have to pay attention during conference calls.

If you’re not listening carefully, it’s hard to know whether the guy calling in from home is making a comment to the group or reminding his daughter to grab her lunch before she heads out the door. And you can’t tell if that question from your colleague in Chicago was for you or a clerk in the dry cleaner’s shop she just walked into.

Cloud storage, file sharing, and remote meeting platforms give us mind-blowing flexibility. Once you learn to manage the tools and not get caught in an “always on” state, you can end up with a cool blend of professional and personal that suits your life. But for the love of tiny baby Jesus, please tap the mute button when all you need to do is listen.

By the way — props to you for emptying the dishwasher first thing in the morning. It’s a thankless job.

And as everyone else on the call can attest, it’s also a loud, clanky job.