Did you know that one of the biggest problems with Zoom meetings is that looking at our face can be incredibly stressful?
On Zoom calls, we have so much focus that we need to put on (and we're not allowed to take breaks throughout the meeting) so we need to constantly be putting our attention directly on the screen, which can also affect our high sights and overall our brain.
As someone who is definitely no stranger to online meetings, that stuck with me, so much so that I made a big decision - over two year ago.
I took the plunge and sent all of my clients an email saying, “from now on, Fridays are out of office days”.
At first, I felt a bit sick about it - I always thought I had my boundaries set, yet it looks like I still had some work to do!
In light of that decision, I decided to keep my Fridays blank: no meetings, no calls, and no recurring tasks on my to-do.
I called this a “no-calls” day. It is incredibly effective when it comes to streamlining my schedule - and it may as well work for you too.
👩🏫 Lesson of the week
The No-to-do day allows me to focus on anything I feel my attention should go to. It does not mean I do nothing at all. It means I can make the time to do anything I think needs to be completed or revised.
Being able to free your mind and make more space at least once weekly has immense power.
I talk about meetings a lot in Reclaim your Time Off, because I believe the whole meeting culture could see a big re-haul.
Zoom-free Fridays are an idea originating from Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser's plan to provide the bank's staff a weekly respite from video calls.
This spawned a debate about the mental toll of the pandemic workday on office workers.
When our work regularly spills over into nights, very early mornings and weekends, it can prevent us from recharging fully, and that isn’t good for you nor, ultimately, for Citi.
Preach Jane, preach.
I always find two or three tasks from my weekly schedule keep being pushed back relentlessly, and I used to end up finishing them on Saturdays.
Having a day with nothing planned or scheduled allows me the flexibility of making the time to re-evaluate what I have been doing in the past week, review my efforts and tie any loose ends.
How to Set a ‘No-call’ Day
At the core of a no-call day stand very simple good and clear communication practices. Still, setting up a no-to-do day does require some prep work, specifically:
Creating clear boundaries to allow one day with nothing on your calendar - for each person, it will be a different day. Make sure it makes sense with your schedule.
A way to see your weekly tasks at a glance to ensure you keep free from any specific projects that day.
Commitment and willpower to stick to your guns and don’t allow anyone to breach that safe space you created for yourself. That may mean not checking emails, muting yourself on Slack or whatever is necessary to protect that space.
Just remember to adapt your calendar availability, restructure your weekly focuses and block time on Friday (or whichever day you want) to become a free-flow day for you.
Three Alternative Ways to Reduce Meeting Fatigue
I know, I know. For some of us meeting-free days are virtually impossible.
So here aa few things you can do to optimise your meetings and beat some fatigue.
The first thing you can do is look at your days and set out how many meetings you can really have every day. Once you do that, make sure that you allocate a specific time throughout the day that will be best for you to have those meetings.
Please, please have a meeting agenda: Before your conversation, ask the person you're talking to if there's anything they want to discuss, or you should prepare. You can reduce the meeting time by up to 50% by simply doing that.
Have some buffer time in between each meeting to create a clear meeting agenda - buffer time implies making time for at least 15 minutes between each meeting to reset, take notes and collect ideas.
I personally have 30 minutes of buffer. Yes, even for online meetings.
Also, a very important question: do you prefer having a chat in the afternoon, or in the morning?
Make sure that those meetings, especially the recurring ones, don't fall during your most productive time today.
Gift alert 🎁 If you’d like to grab a free version of my Meeting dashboard - also accessible to all members of the all-access pass.
Last but not least, ask yourself a straightforward question. Could you take this meeting and turn it into a phone call?
I know, groundbreaking. There is a lot to be said about the power of just having a phone call.
🏫 Class in session
Since you are reclaiming some time today, why not checking in an oldie from the podcast - my fantastic conversation with Marketing Max about tactics to improve your marketing for the rest of 2024 and beyond?
It’s been a two years since my no-calls day, so I thought it’d be a time for an “Instagram VS reality” check-in.
Two years of call-free Fridays, and this is what happened
I have no meetings on Fridays for either clients or any other commitment
I have no projects or client work on Fridays
Fridays allow me to look over any overdue project or task from the week, protecting my weekend
I do have tasks (still), but I am adaptable with my schedule
A few highlights have been the flexibility that Fridays have been giving me. Yes, I am still working five days per week, but Friday is MY day, and I commit to making it whatever I want it to be and shifting my focus on celebrating my accomplishments.
This may be your sign to try something new, and reclaim one of your days. If so, which one would you choose?
Always cheering you on,
Fab ✌️