Why Zoom Drains You and What To Do About It

I’ve heard many co-workers comment on the way ZOOM drains us. For some, the feeling of being drained may be due to the application’s “newness,” popularity and primary mode of both work and home communication. Although I do believe that all interactions (including ZOOM ) have the potential to sap our energy given the personality differences among us (i.e. introverts, extroverts, ambivert personality types), a recent article on BBC’s Remote Control explored possible causes for ZOOM-fatigue with academic experts on learning and development in the workplace.

Gianpiero Petriglieri, an associate professor at Insead, posed the notion that video chats are simply harder than face-to-face communications. Consider how much work it takes to process non-verbal cues like facial expressions, the tone and pitch of the voice, and body language. He also mentioned the anxiety many have in a video call when the technology pauses or fails. A 2014 study showed that even a slight freeze of 1.2 seconds in a video call can lead participants to interpret the speaker as unfriendly. For others, video conferencing may feel like a performance, a place where every action is being judged silently by other participants. These interpretations can raise the anxiety of all participants involved. Not to mention the effects of our global pandemic where home life and work life now merge and videoconferencing platforms like ZOOM may feel like a mandated form of communication for both work and play. Apparently, according to experts, human beings like and need multiple types of social interactions. When our options for social communication are limited to a single tool, the tool, itself, can carry the brunt of our collective frustration.

Strategies to Alleviate ZOOM Fatique

In addition to the strategies listed above, there are a myriad of ways to apply best practices in online teaching and learning to ZOOM meetings. Our company specializes in helping people to teach using virtual/online technologies. If you or someone you know is looking for help in navigating our new virtual reality, please reach out. Email info@leetaylornelms.com or call me at (703) 468-0953!

Looking for help in navigating our new ZOOM reality? Please reach out. Email info@leetaylornelms.com or call me at (703) 468-0953!