Lights, camera, action. 3 ways to look brilliant on Zoom

In high school, I studied an unusual mix of subjects. I scrapped math classes early on, in favour of drama, filmmaking and even busking skills. In 2020, I finally had an opportunity to capitalise on all that learning. It turned out my mix of performance experience was ideally suited to delivering training on Zoom. While other trainers struggled to keep audiences engaged, I revelled in the opportunity to use my stagecraft and video production know-how.

 

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If you’re not quite so experienced in these areas, here are some tips you can use to improve your Zoom presentations.

  1. Get your lighting right. Invest in a cheap lighting kit and leave it set up at your desk.
  2. Get off your butt. Don’t deliver from a seated position. Stand up and perform in the same way you do in the training room.
  3. Alternate between having your video on and focusing purely on the slides. This adds a bit of visual variety for your audience.

Of course, these are just a few tips to get you started. To really deliver an impressive performance on Zoom, you need to constantly upgrade your skills. The good news is doing this is fun. If you have a strong creative streak, like me, you’ll find it an amazingly inspiring journey.

 

About the author: Eleanor Shakiba

Eleanor is a positive psychology trainer. She designs bespoke programs for organisations and individuals who want to promote ‘positive deviance’ in business. Her expertise in teaching social and emotional intelligence skills makes Eleanor a highly sought-after facilitator. Eleanor’s qualifications are in Positive Psychology, Social Anthropology, Counselling, Coaching, Adult Education and Neuro Linguistic Programming. Eleanor is the author of the Positive Psychology Toolkit for HR and L&D Practitioners .