It's day 10 of my reading series from Effective Virtual Conversations and thanks for joining us!
We are continuing our journey through chapter 2 of the book
Listen in as I share pages 31 on wards.

Jennifer Britton
Founder and CEO - Potentials Realized
Phone: 416-996-8326
Author of several books including Effective Virtual Conversations (2017) and PlanDoTrack for Virtual and Remote Professionals (2019) - pick up a digital PDF copy of PlanDoTrack at our site.
Contact us to discuss support for your remote workspace - team, individual and organizational coaching, training and virtual facilitation
Download a copy of the Remote Working Whitepaper here

Join Effective Virtual Conversations Author Jennifer Britton for her daily reading of Effective Virtual Conversations. Today she reads pages 6 - 9 -
Why is this important?
Why Virtual Learning
The Downside to Virtual Learning

Enjoy!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Founder and CEO - Potentials Realized
Phone: 416-996-8326
Author of Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), PlanDoTrack for Virtual and Remote Professionals (2019)
Contact us to discuss support for your remote workspace - team, individual and organizational coaching, training and virtual facilitation
Download a copy of the Remote Working Whitepaper here

As an author, I enjoy the fact that I get to connect with a wide variety of professionals who are interested in the topics I write around.

In addition to the public speaking events and corporate sessions I deliver, I also host regular (i.e. monthly) virtual community calls which are open to everyone to attend. In today's busy world, it  is more likely that people will catch up with the recording, AND there is a longevity to video that can't be beat!

I wanted to share with you several of the past EVC posts which I think you might be interested in checking out, in service to supporting you in having more engaging and effective virtual conversations. These calls will likely be of interest whether you are hosting a webinar, or leading a virtual team meeting. 

Some of the recent calls have included:
Tricky Issues in Virtual Calls -  View it here (Run time 30 minutes) 
Core Skills for Masterful Virtual Conversationalists - View it here
​Building Trust and Connection in the Virtual Space. View it here.
3 Activities for your Virtual Conversations - View it here.

All of these map back to my book, Effective Virtual Conversations. If you haven't picked up a copy of it, be sure to do so at Amazon.

What have been your favorite community call episodes? Be sure to share with us here so others can check them out.

Enjoy!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, MES, PCC, CPT
Author of several books including: PlanDoTrack (2019), Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), Effective Group Coaching (2010)
Potentials Realized  - Specializing in support to virtual and remote teams, leaders and entrepreneurs
Award-winning Coaching Skills Training
Connect with us by Phone: (416)996-8326

Whether it's a virtual team meeting or an interactive webinar, connecting people early in your virtual events can make a big difference, signalling that something  "out of the ordinary" might lay ahead. This is key given the default "Death by Conference Call" mode many virtual listeners slip into as the calls sarts.

Here are 10 quick warm-up ideas to get your next virtual session moving a little differently.

#1 - Get people to locate on a map where they are calling in from.

#2 - Create a word puzzle for people to engage with

#3  - Show some trivia and have people guess the answer (or the source)

#4 - Create a video about the topic you are speaking about. This month at the Learning Lab and Design Studio (an annual program I run for learning professionals of all kinds - facilitators, coaches, and leaders) we're exploring video based learning, and group members are actually going to create their own videos in our next call.

 #5 - Create a quiz

#6 - Show a brain twister or spot the difference

#7 - Have a question or prompt on the screen which people can engage with or reflect on

#8 -  Get people to mindmap all their ideas about the topic

#9 - Share a photo related to the topic

#10 - Have a quick list of books, podcast or videos on the topic

What will help you start your next call off a little differently so that people know that it's not going to be "Death by Conference call".

Please share your ideas in the comments below.

Enjoy!
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton, MES, PCC, CPT
Author of several books including: PlanDoTrack (2019), Effective Virtual Conversations (2017), Effective Group Coaching (2010)
Potentials Realized  - Specializing in support to virtual and remote teams, leaders and entrepreneurs
Award-winning Coaching Skills Training
Connect with us by Phone: (416)996-8326

The second Monday of every month from about 11 - 11:30 am ET/New  York usually finds me leading the monthly Effective Virtual Conversations Community Call. I've been hosting these since the summer of 2017 when EVC was released, and I'm pleased to announce that I've just posted the 2019 schedule for the first half of the year.

These calls are usually hosted on zoom (so we can use the technology available to us) and run for 30 minutes. They are also posted over at my YouTube channel. Content and tool rich, they take a practical, tips approach to supporting leaders, team members and learning professionals in creating more engaging virtual conversations. Most of the tips come from my 2017 book, Effective Virtual Conversations.

2019 topics are scheduled as:
January - Five Virtual and Remote Team Builders (ideal for virtual and remote teams!)
February - Enhancing your Virtual Collaborations
March - Making it Stick. Boosting Retention in Virtual Sessions  (NOTE this call is held on 3/25 as I will be away on 3/11)
April - Design Hack (Bring a real-time design project you want to work on and leave this special 45 minute session with the skeleton of a webinar/virtual session)
May - Jazzing up engagement -2019 style

Other calls in 2019 will focus on neuroscience and virtual learning; content creation.

I hope that you will join me in my zoom room (usually 270-302-0415). Details are typically posted the morning of the call over at my Effective Group Coaching Facebook page. No cost to attend other than your time and your connection!

Download a copy of the call schedule here for Winter 2019.

Best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer
Jennifer Britton, CPCC, PCC
Facebook – EffectiveGroupCoaching
Twitter @jennbritton
Pick up a copy of Effective Virtual Conversations - on Amazon - https://amzn.to/2EdsbUp
Also author of Effective Group Coaching (2010), From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching (2013), Coaching Business Builder (2018), and PlanDoTrack(2019)

With the temperatures here in Toronto dipping into record-breaking territory last week, and several planes grounded one day, I was reminded of why I shifted to a work flow several years ago which has me office based and working virtually outside of the summer months and what I term shoulder seasons (September/October, and April/May). Having had extensive local, regional and global travel as part of my own work portfolio for more than a decade, I am impatient when it comes to my time getting impacted by travel disruption. My own professional travel fatigue, along with wanting to continue my own global connections and work, is what led me to much of my own early full-time virtual work back in 2004. Today it's the way I do things and the way our business is established. Every day I see more and more businesses dipping their toes into the virtual space, innovating to make it work. And innovation is the key term here, we can't just transplant "old ways of working, leading and conversing" expecting a different result in the virtual space. 

​This year I am committed to sharing at least two blog posts a month. Some may be an excerpt from my recent book, Effective Virtual Conversations, and others may be new content and pointers to examples of how companies and teams are making virtual work for them. This is in addition to the monthly Effective Virtual Conversations calls I will be hosting into this new year. Next on scheduled for January 15th at 11 am ET - stay tuned at our Facebook page (Effective Group Coaching) for more info.

​Today's post is an excerpt from Effective Virtual Conversations about the business case for virtual. Here's what I write on pages 7 and 8 of the book:

The Business Case For Virtual (Excerpt from Effective Virtual Conversations - pgs 7 and 8 Copyright 2017, Jennifer Britton, All Rights Reserved)

"There are many reasons why it is important to take a look at virtual conversations, teamwork and learning, namely:
 
The Move to Just-in-Time or Real Time Processes - We live in an era of immediate gratification. Recent research points to the "Uber effect," which is the ability to acquire anything real time or just-in-time. This is changing the landscape of what is seen as "effective" in the learning space by professionals. Learners and other professionals are asking, "If I need it now, why shouldn't I be able to get it or access it right away?" On-demand and mobile platforms offer this real-time learning. Internet-based work allows for us to connect and work real-time, no longer necessitating long travel or delays in our collaborative spaces.
 
Time Efficiency -Virtual approaches provide many benefits in terms of time and budget. They provide a reduction in the amount of time people need to spend away from the office to engage in learning. Why travel if you don't have to?
 
Reduction of the Carbon Footprint (Eco-Friendliness) - Britain's Open University found that e-learning consumes 90% less energy than traditional courses. They found that the amount of CO2 emissions (per student) is also reduced by up to 85%.[i]
 
Bringing Expertise Together - Virtual conversations and learning allow you to collaborate and learn from the best across time differences. These peer partnerships span geographic boundaries, changing the way we see the world, how we share information and what we create.
 
Bringing Peers Together from a Wider Cross-Section - The virtual space allows us to connect people from around the world in similar passions. With Zoom and other video-streaming meeting services, virtual meetings sometimes feel as if we are across the table from each other in terms of our ability to see each other and engage in real-time conversation.
 
Real-time Learning - With the advent of mobile technologies, smart devices bring conversations and learning to us immediately-from the office to commuting, our phones have created a new window to the conversation and learning ecosystem.
 
Why Virtual Learning?
Many companies are leveraging virtual learning for a number of reasons including:

• Reducing travel and associated costs
• Supplementing learning experiences for global teams
• Fostering cross-sectoral and cross-functional learning across the organization, or locations
• Reducing the cost of meetings
• Saving time from travel
• Reducing their carbon footprint"

​What do you see as the compelling business, and human, reasons for moving to more virtual and/or remote work relationships? Share them with us in the comments section.

​You can pick up a copy of Effective Virtual Conversations at Amazon or our site.

Have a great week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | GroupCoachingEssentials.com
Author of Effective Group Coaching, From One to Many: Best Practices for Team and Group Coaching and Effective Virtual Conversations 
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: EffectiveGroupCoaching 

It's been a busy fall for most professionals I have spoken with recently. My guess is that you may not have caught all of the Community calls I have held in the past few months on leading and facilitating more engaging virtual events - meetings, conference calls, and virtual coaching.

I've been enjoying hosting these 30 minute calls this fall as the word about my new book spreads, and these calls have been interspersed with other virtual events hosted by many professional associations. A big thanks to the ICF Community of Practice, HRPA Peel, and ICF Halifax bringing me in for recent, or upcoming, virtual events. If you know of a group who would benefit from learning more about creating more engaging, and impactful virtual calls, and support for virtual teams, please contact me, or pass my details on.

In case you have missed some of the recent fall community calls, you can check out some of these recent ones which are now posted up on either one of our YouTube Channels - The Teams365 Leadership Channel, and the EffectiveGroupCoach channel.

Recent community calls have included:

Tricky Issues in Virtual Events - November 13, 2017. View it here (30 minutes on some of the tricky issues you might face when leading virtual events - from technology to group members)


Pre-program checklist - before you launch your own virtual events. View it here (30 minutes on a number of items you will want to consider BEFORE you launch!

I'll be setting the 2018 call schedule soon and am aiming to offer about 8-10 community calls throughout next year. I'll let you know when the schedule is available.

For now, please mark your calendars for the last two EVC Community calls for the year:

Monday December 4th (11 - 11:45 am ET - note time) - 2018 Program Hack - Bring a program you want to take action on as we'll be working real-time on a program design activity.

Monday December 18th (11 am ET start) - Last community call of the year. Setting people up for success.

Please leave a review or comment on the videos!

With best wishes,
Jennifer

I've been sharing different tips on Effective Virtual Conversations from my new book over at my sister blog, Teams365 (for Leaders) for a few months now, and I am bringing some of my favorites over to this new blog. One of the things that you may notice if you've been working with groups or teams for a while is your ability to be like a Chameleon. This is especially true when working as a virtual conversationalist and leading different virtual events, especially given that the geographic range of the members you may be working with can potentially be larger than when we work in-person. In connecting with people of varying styles and preferences, it can be very important for us to become aware of the biases and preferences we bring, and how that can help, and hinder a conversation. With time our ability to become more of a chameleon, adapting our approaches in service to the groups and teams work  with, can become a definer of who we are.

Here's what I wrote a few weeks ago in EVC Tip #5 - 

On page 100 of my upcoming book, Effective Virtual Conversations, I write "As virtual facilitators we may become chameleon-like over time, as we look to adapt and adjust our styles and approaches for different contexts".

Hopefully, as we gain experience with different groups and different platforms we learn from each experience. Being able to be fluid and adaptable with our approaches is critical for this work, in order to meet the needs of diverse groups and teams.

This week consider these questions:
1. How would you describe your natural facilitation/leadership styles?
2. How would your groups/teams/clients describe your natural style?
3. What are your biases? (i.e. what's your natural style even if it's not in service to the group you are working with?)
4. What style might be more in service to the people you are working with?
5.  What is a stretch point for you?
6. What does chameleon-like mean for you?
7. When have you been fluid in your approaches? What impact has it had?

​I hope that you will take a few minutes to reflect on these questions and think about your work and upcoming conversations.

​If you haven't checked out the recent calls I have started doing on Effective Virtual Conversations, you can check them out here, along with the upcoming call schedule. Hope that you will drop in and join me live!

​Have a great week,
Jennifer

​Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | EffectiveVirtualConversations
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Retreats.
Follow us on Twitter @jennbritton
Phone: (416)996-8326

Do you have questions about virtual facilitation? Looking to book a some time with me. Check out current openings and a summer special where you can "pick my brain" for a 45 minute call. Click here to book.

​

In today's blog post I wanted to share with you one of the Virtual Facilitation Tips I have been posting on Mondays for the last few weeks over at my sister blog for leaders, the Teams365 blog. 

​The  tip I am sharing today is Tip #3 - the importance of  creating trust, safety and connection in the virtual space. Without connection in the virtual space it is more likely that people will become more disengaged or they may multi-task. Similar to having "skin in the game" a peer conversation when we feel connected calls on us to contribute, as long as we feel safe to do so. As I expand in the book, the notion of "safety" groups and teams is being further validated by research.

​Here's what I wrote a few weeks ago in Tip #3:

Effective Virtual Conversation Tip #3: Creating More Connection to Build Safety in Virtual Conversation Spaces
“Trust and connection are essential for creating a ‘safe’ space for conversations” – Jennifer Britton, Effective Virtual Conversations pp 95

Today’s Effective Virtual Conversation quote comes from page 95 of my new book. Just as with any in-person group or team process, trust and connection are essential for people to move into dialogue. The same holds true when you work with groups and teams virtually – in meetings, as virtual teams or in conference calls. What are the things you can do to create more connection and trust in your virtual space?
This week we will look at building more connection in your calls, and next Monday, at how to create more trust between, and with, participants. These two elements are critical for creating the safe space for an engaged call.

Five ways you may want to consider to build more connection in your virtual spaces are:

• Breakouts
• Video Streaming
• Pre-calls
• Buddies/Peer Partners
• Introductions

Let’s take a look at a couple of these – breakouts and introductions -  in greater depth:
Breakouts – Today’s default in a lot of virtual events is “let me talk to you because it’s easier”. This is often where we lose people and they become disengaged. Using breakouts are an important way to get people connected with each other and sharing with each other. Check to see if your platform provides the ability to use breakouts, and have people move into smaller pairings of 2, 3 or 4. Some possible approaches to use when working with breakouts are:

1. Provide small groups with a question to explore or share around for 7 – 10 minutes. For example if you are working with new team leaders the question might be “What’s the most important resource you have tapped into this week to help you with your work?”. Adjust your questions accordingly.
2. Have groups generate a list of solutions to the biggest challenge the team is facing

 
Introductions can start before the event. This goes hand in hand with expectations. Let people know what they can expect around interactivity, particularly if you are planning to be more interactive. Introductions can involve:
A short pre-email sent out prior to your meeting sharing who you are, what you do, any goals they have and what’s important about the conversation. This can also be done verbally at the start of the program as well.
Introductions can also involve breakouts where two people introduce themselves to each other, and then the partner introduces them to the larger group. This can help especially if people are more shy to share personal details about themselves.

Introductions and connections with you, the facilitator, is also important. Consider how you will be connecting with people prior to the program  - in writing and verbally.

​As I go to close off today's EVC Tip - what are the steps you can undertake to boost more trust and connection in your work? Chapter 1 of Effective Virtual Conversations goes more into the TRIAD of virtual learning and how to foster trust, connection and safety.

Best wishes,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | Effective Virtual Conversations | Group Coaching Essentials
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Retreats.
Follow us on Twitter @Teams365 (Leadership/Team Issues) or @jennbritton (Coaching/Facilitation)
Phone: (416)996-8326

​Join me on Monday August 7th for our next Community Call at 11 am ET. Download the call schedule for our summer and fall launch (2 calls per month - no cost other than your time and connection charges!).
​

For the past several weeks I have been doing a weekly blog post over at my Teams365 blog incorporating several Effective Virtual Conversation Tips from the book. I wanted to start sharing these with you here, starting with Effective Virtual Conversation Tip #1 - Setting Everyone Up for Success. Here's what I wrote a few weeks ago at the Teams365 blog:

In late July, my new book, Effective Virtual Conversations, will be released. It's the culmination of tips and best practices for leading teams and conversations in the virtual space, a focus of mine since the 1990s, when I was leading teams across countries in South America connected only by radio.

Today's tip is "Setting Everyone Up for Success". Pre-planning in the virtual space can shift a call from being a time-waster to an expedited conversation.

Some things you might want to consider doing in setting your team or group up for success with your virtual call includes:
1. Thinking through any pre-work or pre-reading people should do before they join the call. This can be shared on your intranet, Slack drive or other file sharing service.
2. Having a clear agenda to follow that everyone has fed into. One of the traps of virtual meetings is that people are often bouncing from one meeting to the next. Being proactive with who needs to be on the call (think decision maker or information required) is important as it's often hard to pull a virtual colleague into a meeting last minute.
3. Keeping accountabilities visible. One of the challenges with today's digital world is that we don't always have the same immediate visual cues in front of us,  as we may have had with team work which was co-located. What are the things you can do to keep accountabilities visible for everyone in different locations? Is there a weekly dashboard you send out? A photo which can be put on as a screen saver? Something else to keep things visible.
4. Being vigilant with follow-up. Follow-up and circling back is even more important in the virtual space. What will help with follow-up for your team? What one on one conversations (voice and email) are important to have? What feedback and update mechanisms are in place so peers can also keep each other in the loop.

As you consider "setting everyone up for success" what comes to mind for you? What will set you up for success as well?

Have a great start to your week,
Jennifer

Jennifer Britton
Potentials Realized | GroupCoachingEssentials
Team and Leadership Development | Coaching | Retreats.
Follow us on Twitter @Teams365
Phone: (416)996-8326

​Connect with us to be the first to know more about launch events around my newest book - Effective Virtual Conversations - coming out soon! Setting your team up for success is one of dozens of topics covered throughout the book. Eight questions you want to ask your team before every meeting is also covered.