I’ve been reading Nick Morgan’s new book Can You Hear Me? How to Connect With People in a Virtual World and I recommend it to anyone interested in the topic.
Morgan offers some of the science behind why the various communication channels we depend upon in a virtual office are often so frustrating and/or ineffective. And he shares good, concrete recommendations for overcoming the challenges associated with email, texting, conference calls, video conferencing, and other methods of virtual communication.
One of the takeaways I keep coming back too: It’s virtually impossible for most people to stay focused and well engaged in a conference call (even when video conferencing) that’s longer than 30 minutes.
“Have you ever put a conference call on mute while talking to a colleague at your desk or while doing the dishes or checking Facebook? Then why do you keep booking hour-long conference calls and expecting people to stay focused the whole time?”