One of my favorite teams made the decision of using Google Hangouts to communicate.
I was initially resistant to increasing my social media consumption. After years of sharing-overload, I great value my ability to focus and to tune out all distractions – this is a form of discipline that is highly compatible with my years of working as a scientist and with the fact that I am invariably overcommitted. However, I am a convert of using Google Hangouts to leverage the capabilities of a virtual team in real time. Google Hangouts has the added advantage of “forcing” me to be a good listener – or a good reader, as the case might be, because it removes most opportunities to interrupt partially formed thoughts and input that my teammates provide.
We have had a variety of meetings over the semester that have ranged from well-planned and performed under stable circumstances, to hilariously (and heroically) “making it work” despite our many other commitments. However, most of our team’s interactions occurs via Google Hangouts and occurs everyday, multiple times per day. Over time, we have collected a large body of observations on each other’s personal and professional lives, personalities, and work habits. The continuous nature of this communication allow us to treat each other as people, not as an “audience” whom to impress. That openness has given us permission to fail in front of each other, in an environment of trust and great emotional safety.
The way in which members of teams in general get to know and interact with each other is in flux. These changes, as well as the countless iterations of communication platforms many of us have experienced over the course of our professional lives come with challenges and advantages. II have been learning how important it is to understand and quickly adopt changes that will enhance our ability to team for adaptation, to team to support each other’s goals, and to team to take advantage of each other’s talents. While I do that I keep reminding myself to keep an open mind and be willing to invest into experimentation. I have the tendency to tune out all distractions – even the ones that have the potential to make me a better professional and a better person. My job us to take these insights and strive for balance.
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