You may be the reason why you're sleepy after an online meeting.

On a recent family Zoom call, my sister-in-law spoke about how exhausted she was after virtual meetings compared to when they’re in-person.

I thought maybe she was tired due to blue light from excess screen time. Then she explained that there’s “too much going on” when meeting online. When she’s in an in-person meeting with someone, or a group of people, she says she's entirely focused on them. She doesn’t find this tiring. 

I produce and host online events where there’s a lot going on, so this made me concerned. But, further clarification from her, plus announcements like Cisco acquiring Socio and Slido, (see this article by Ron Miller), have assured me there’s nothing to worry about. In fact, her observation identified one of the key solutions event profs are looking for in terms of attendee engagement at online events and meetings.

CISCO’s comprehensive event management solution emphasizes that, even once we’re back to live, in-person events, “…having the ability to combine (them) with a virtual experience means that you can open up your event to a much wider audience beyond those who can attend in person….”. I agree that this is not something that’s going away.

Having a lot going on during hybrid or fully online events, especially on sophisticated event platforms, is key to engagement and success. What my sister-in-law was talking about was how, during an online meeting, she will check and answer emails on her phone.

I believe this might be exhausting because she’s undertaking two separate experiences at once, as opposed to multi-tasking as part of a single experience. The latter may not be as exhausting. 

This is one of the reasons event profs book my Quiz Show and gamification- I entertain the audience on one-screen, and engage them in the same experience on their mobile phones. They actually CAN’T check their emails or scroll the news while they attend my show. 

With robust platforms, like the new CISCO build, and many new online tools for hybrid events that are becoming available to hosts and performers like me, I’m not concerned about attendee exhaustion. To help ensure people who attend your meetings don't get sleepy by the end, occupy their mobile phones with relevant interactive. 

Ironically, the one place I haven’t been doing this over the past year is during our regular family Zoom calls. My relatives must be exhausted afterwards.

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