Meeting culture.
So much is the same, and so much is so different these days.
Same: for one, we saw Tokyo Olympics chief and former prime minister of Japan Yoshiro Mori remark that meetings with women take too long because they talk so much. The outcry following the comments was enough for Mori to resign… but were the comments even accurate? Rebuttal below from Adam Grant in The Washington Post (“Who wont shut up in meetings?”).
Different: We are now living our lives online. We have been for almost a year. Calls that were, back in 2019, phone calls or even intense text / email sessions are now full-blown video situations. Which is great, in a lot of ways, and allows for much-needed connection in such an isolating time… but it also has the potential to veer into unrealistic-expectations-territory.
Take for example, our latest piece authored by
Simone Kendle sharing her experience as a current MBA candidate, on-campus club officer and mother juggling multiple responsibilities. She describes how “what began as a mini-
#Instagram rant as I was told to turn my camera on for class, has shifted into a real conversation many of us didn’t know we needed ‘till it happened.”
When asking people to turn cameras on (or requiring it), the seemingly harmless request doesn’t consider “the psychological impact to the person showcasing their world, and what sort of effect that may have on their ability to be their confident-selves in the moment…. Has ‘Camera Off’ turned into a test of trust, commitment, or engagement?”
When we posted and shared the article, many of you commented on just how stressful the added component of [required] video can be. And many shared how this highlighted a total blindspot for them, as it comes from a point of view they’ve never had or considered before.
Meeting culture has its ups and downs, and it certainly is going to continue to evolve. What comes with that are the norms, the values, the jokes (and the memes) and how we continue to figure it out. We’ve come a long way in the last year – the digital transformation is real. But the trick is figuring out what from the past we want to keep, what we want to toss, and how we can support our colleagues to get the best possible work done and offer each other the respect we deserve in the process. Read both Simone’s piece on MBAchic and Adam’s Op/Ed in WaPo, and would love to hear your experiences.
Last week we mentioned a surprise from a familiar face… Wharton Organizational Psychologist and Professor Adam Grant generously provided MBAchic with signed copies of his newest, #1 NYT bestseller, Think Again. Stay tuned for the announcement of the winners on social and thank you for entering! Read Adam’s Washington Post Op/Ed and grab Think Again today.
Sending you good vibes for the week ahead - hope to have you join our chat tomorrow!
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