Dress check. Makeup check. Style check. Reckon ready for your next zoom call?
But what about your home and the interior décor? The way you present your home
can make a big difference in how professional and pulled together you appear to
colleagues and potential clients. Working from home means that your home is part
of the equation.
People notice and remember little details of what they see in the background. Ideal or not we all tend to subconsciously judge what we see. This becomes all the more important if the video interview is for a potential job or if you work in a creative industry.
Tips to make the best impression possible on your next video call:
1. Pick your spot
Search your house to determine where you’d like to set up for work. Pick a comfortable space where you can feel comfortable, calm and relaxed working all day long. If possible, invest in an ergonomic office chair for good posture or else make do with the sofa or the dining table chair. When you are at your ease, it shows on camera too. Avoid calls from the bedroom or bathroom. Use a do-not- disturb sign on the door to your workroom, especially when you are in meetings. Best not to have any doors in the frame, in case of accidental interruptions. Don’t set up in front of a corner-visually, it’s a terrible angle to show behind you.2. Check the lighting
Choose an optimally well-lit workspace. Prefer natural light, you may sit facing a window or if not possible use artificial lights or a desk lamp which you can angle and redirect. Better to use blackout shades or curtains instead of venetian blinds behind you because the light streaming in through the slats will wreak havoc on many a camera’s automatic light adjustments. Avoid mixing light sources.3. Decorate but sparingly
You may be working in your personal space but don’t make it too personal. No dishes, dirty laundry or bed sheets in the web call background. But make sure it’s not too boring and sterile like an empty white wall either.You may curate your space using a select few pieces of artwork, framed family photo frames, travel collectibles, fresh flowers in vases or live green plants to reflect your personality and make it pretty and pleasing to the eyes. However, take care that the background is not overly busy, such as an overcrowded bookcase or shelf. You want your valuable content and shining personality to be centre stage and the focus of the conversation, so remove anything that may be distracting from the discussion. Avoid any excess background clutter.4. Keep it tidy
A tidy, well-curated and professional-looking workspace as opposed to a cluttered and chaotic one will help you to feel confident and will also help people to perceive you as a competent person. Piles of stuff on the desk will look messy. If everything’s organised you won’t have to fidget around during the meeting and display an awkward onscreen presence.5. Lazy hack
If you have little time for a full-blown and high style home office makeover, fake it with a virtual wall-covering. Simply use a video call backdrop such as a gorgeous interior, a beach or whatever else you find fun or fancy, from sites such as West Elm, Modsy or Canva. After all, strangers or coworkers don’t need to see the inside of your home.6. Do a trial run
Finally, a good way to preview and test your setup is to start up your video app and take a screenshot. You will get an idea of what others will see at their end and you can play around with different setups to see which works best. So go on, follow the above-given tips and tricks to make your virtual presence pleasing and professional and present the best view of your home and yourself that you can. Dufter .in