If it’s a Zoom call, it must be time for Lego – Wall Street Journal

A client who dropped off some work for me today confided that her bosses hate Zoom. "They insist we go to the office for meetings," she said. I confessed that I hate Zoom meetings too, and we fell into mutual commiseration about how tiring they are, how time-consuming, how stressful. I see now, however, that I have been doing it all wrong. It seems people are doing all sorts of other things while supposedly on work video calls: Lego, yoga, housework, walking the dog. And many are not even bothering to turn the camera off. It's all part of the work-from-home revolution enforced on us by the Covid-19 pandemic, and humanity has had to find a way to cope with the many demands of our "new normal". On my next Zoom call, I think I will be sewing. – Renee Moodie.Admit it, you do laundry during work video calls.By Shan Li.At the start of the coronavirus lockdown, Miguel Arias showed up to every Zoom call in a suit and tie — giving his undivided attention to virtual meetings as city council president of Fresno, Calif..___STEADY_PAYWALL___.Fast forward into summer, and not only is the formal wardrobe gone, but Mr Arias said he has taken to plowing through laundry, cooking and other items on his to-do list while on video calls with his staff. Most of the time, the camera is on.."Between 30 Zoom calls a day, something's gotta give," said Mr Arias, 42..More than five months into the pandemic, people are dropping their online facades on Zoom. Exhausted by days jam-packed with online meetings, many are giving up the pretence of a boundary between work and private lives. Instead, they are seizing on video conferences as chunks of time to also garden, walk the dog, watch TV and exercise..Multitasking enthusiasts say that colleagues don't bat an eyelash, and often admit that they, too, are sneaking in other activities with the cameras rolling..Playing with Lego.For his part, Mr Arias said he has accepted multitasking from everyone. During the comments portion at public meetings with the council, he said, someone will inevitably pop up on video with a question while washing the dishes. Mr Arias now starts off staff calls asking everyone to "just confess," so no one is confused by unexpected background noises when cameras are off but the sound is on, such as barking or honking (dog-walking and driving are two favourite side activities, he has noticed)..Richard Weston, a 44-year-old from Birmingham, England, said he recently tuned out of a video meeting with 60 lodge secretaries for the Freemasons, an international fraternal order. This gathering — a how-to session on properly filling out paperwork — got "a little boring" and had inspired fellow Masons who "are fond of their own voice," he said..Read also: How to navigate through your work-from-home shift – Wall Street Journal.Instead of listening, Mr Weston used his laptop and two monitors to simultaneously watch a YouTube clip of a sci-fi TV show, scan Facebook, reply to emails and read the news, with his camera on. He also fiddled with some Star Wars Lego sets.."I was quite surprised that I didn't go into a mental meltdown," said Mr Weston. He tweeted a photo of the setup, which drew several comments and text messages from other Masons. "Most of them were on Twitter as well," he said..'Life is a mess'.Jennifer Gilmore, the chief financial officer of a tactical-gear company in Greenback, Tenn., said she will occasionally put up a plain virtual background to obscure her multitasking. But increasingly, the 40-year-old said she finds herself not caring if colleagues get a glimpse into everyday life with her young son.."There is a weight on your shoulders to complete everything," Ms Gilmore said. She has managed to pick vegetables from the garden, make sandwiches, feed the dog, clean the bathroom and pick up mail during "mindless" video calls. She keeps the camera mostly just on herself and often puts herself on mute. Once, she "went into a trance" and scrubbed the entire bottom floor of her house.."Life is a mess right now and we just have to embrace it," she added. She said she often doesn't turn the camera off because she still values being able to see other people and other people seeing her — she said the connection is important, even if she is also doing chores during the call..Although some people are still keeping up appearances on video chats, multitasking fans say they are too tired. Some are rebelling against requirements to keep cameras on at all times by trying to integrate video calls into a routine that works with their life..Back-to-back reminders.Jo Purnell, a fifth-grade math and science teacher, was fuming after his Bay Area school sent two back-to-back reminders to keep videos on during all-day staff meetings to prep for the fall semester. So two weeks ago, Mr. Purnell took the iPad into the bathroom with him to silently protest the "ridiculous" rule.."It was positioned to only see my shoulders up, but the towel rack is behind me so I'm sure somebody thought, 'Hmm, looks like you're in the bathroom,' " said Mr Purnell, 28. But, "no one said anything." School officials couldn't immediately be reached for comment..Read also: Careful for that Oops! moment when you're working from home – The Wall Street Journal.Asmae Toumi, a Boston health-care data analyst, said she has been called out once during a virtual meeting: When she looked down to check Twitter on her phone.."My boss joked, 'Are you meditating?' " she recalled. "We all laughed and moved on.".Despite getting caught, Ms. Toumi said she still likes to do multiple things at once on video calls, including workouts. Sometimes, she will turn her own camera off and dip into downward dog or other yoga poses. During one training session on data modeling, Ms. Toumi put the class on one monitor and used the other to take an exercise class with her personal trainer.."I need those mental breaks," she added, "to keep my sanity.".The most nerve-fraying juggling that Kaitlyn Ramsay, a Ph.D. chemistry student from Victoria, Canada, has ever attempted was hopping on two Zoom calls at the same time..'I don't have the superpower to multiply myself'.One was a conference where she was required to speak. The other was a group meeting with a professor to go over research. Neither could be skipped or rescheduled — and she had to keep the cameras on..At one point, both meetings asked for her input. "That's when I just had to be honest," said Ms. Ramsay, 24. "I don't have the superpower to multiply myself." She excused herself from the research group to answer a question at the conference..Elaine Lui, a Toronto-based anchor of the entertainment show etalk on CTV in Canada, cracked open a book while waiting to Zoom with Lin-Manuel Miranda about the film debut of his hit musical "Hamilton." Ms. Lui became thoroughly engrossed in the novel, "Big Summer" by Jennifer Weiner — until a chuckle came from her computer..Once, she "went into a trance" and scrubbed the entire bottom floor of her house..Mr. Miranda had joined the chat room, she said, and saw her flipping pages. After she apologised, the award-winning composer put her at ease.."He said, 'Don't ever apologize for getting lost in a book,' " Ms. Lui said. A representative for Mr. Miranda declined to comment..Write to Shan Li at shan.li@wsj.com

If it’s a Zoom call, it must be time for Lego – Wall Street Journal

Admit it, you do laundry during work video calls

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