1 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:06,840 Speaker 1: Welcome to How I Work, a show about the tactics 2 00:00:06,960 --> 00:00:09,320 Speaker 1: used by the world's most successful people to get so 3 00:00:09,480 --> 00:00:13,160 Speaker 1: much out of their day. I'm your host, doctor Amantha. 4 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:18,200 Speaker 1: I'm an organizational psychologist, the founder of behavioral science consultancy Inventium, 5 00:00:18,360 --> 00:00:21,800 Speaker 1: and I'm obsessed with finding ways to optimize my work day. 6 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:26,040 Speaker 1: Before we get to today's mini episode, I just wanted 7 00:00:26,079 --> 00:00:29,080 Speaker 1: to do a bit of a call out for listener questions. 8 00:00:29,120 --> 00:00:31,000 Speaker 1: As you know, I'm starting to do a few more 9 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:35,959 Speaker 1: episodes where I'm answering any questions that might be on 10 00:00:36,000 --> 00:00:40,560 Speaker 1: your mind around work, maybe remote work and working from home, 11 00:00:40,840 --> 00:00:44,680 Speaker 1: about productivity, any of those areas. So if you've got 12 00:00:44,680 --> 00:00:46,440 Speaker 1: something on your mind that you'd like me to delve 13 00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:50,120 Speaker 1: into the research around and to answer on How I Work, 14 00:00:50,640 --> 00:00:54,520 Speaker 1: drop me a note at Amantha at Inventium dot com 15 00:00:54,520 --> 00:00:56,640 Speaker 1: dot au and my email is always in the show 16 00:00:56,680 --> 00:01:01,760 Speaker 1: notes as well. Okay, let's get on today's mini episode, 17 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:07,479 Speaker 1: which is all around the topic of serendipitous conversations and 18 00:01:07,920 --> 00:01:12,120 Speaker 1: how can that actually happen in the virtual world. So 19 00:01:12,440 --> 00:01:15,680 Speaker 1: a few months ago, my CEO at Inventim Mish sent 20 00:01:15,720 --> 00:01:19,520 Speaker 1: me an email asking what I thought about a kind 21 00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:21,839 Speaker 1: of loose idea that she had for a new product 22 00:01:21,920 --> 00:01:24,720 Speaker 1: for Inventium. She suggested that I sit on it for 23 00:01:24,760 --> 00:01:27,000 Speaker 1: a few days and circle back if I was able 24 00:01:27,040 --> 00:01:29,880 Speaker 1: to develop it a little bit further. So I started 25 00:01:29,880 --> 00:01:32,679 Speaker 1: to flesh it out, and we tuned and throwed bainly 26 00:01:32,720 --> 00:01:34,959 Speaker 1: over email for the next week, with a couple of 27 00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:38,039 Speaker 1: phone conversations thrown in the mix. And then four months 28 00:01:38,120 --> 00:01:40,959 Speaker 1: later we launched the idea and it's actually proving to 29 00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:45,679 Speaker 1: be a most profitable product for twenty twenty. And you know, 30 00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:50,280 Speaker 1: while many managers are lamenting the death of serendipitous conversations 31 00:01:50,360 --> 00:01:53,680 Speaker 1: due to remote working, there are actually strategies that can 32 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:56,840 Speaker 1: be used to build them into our virtual work date. 33 00:01:57,600 --> 00:01:59,560 Speaker 1: So my first piece of advice is to create a 34 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: virtual hallway. One of the challenges of video meetings is 35 00:02:03,440 --> 00:02:06,360 Speaker 1: that they don't allow for the ad hoc conversations that 36 00:02:06,400 --> 00:02:10,440 Speaker 1: happen immediately before and after these events. There are some 37 00:02:10,480 --> 00:02:14,079 Speaker 1: researchers at MIT that are attempting to solve this problem 38 00:02:14,240 --> 00:02:20,919 Speaker 1: with Mingler spelled miglr so. Mingla is software that facilitates 39 00:02:20,919 --> 00:02:25,040 Speaker 1: spontaneous chat with those who are free to be interrupted 40 00:02:25,240 --> 00:02:29,840 Speaker 1: or stick around after the official meeting ends. Other software 41 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:33,760 Speaker 1: solutions tackle the challenge of replacing corridor conversations with ones 42 00:02:33,800 --> 00:02:37,480 Speaker 1: that can take place in a virtual hallway. So donut 43 00:02:38,040 --> 00:02:41,120 Speaker 1: spelled like the thing that you eat, introduces new team 44 00:02:41,160 --> 00:02:44,720 Speaker 1: members who have never previously met, and also makes it 45 00:02:44,760 --> 00:02:48,080 Speaker 1: easy to schedule virtual coffees with co walkers workers, and 46 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:53,679 Speaker 1: hallway ha l lway makes it easy to schedule time 47 00:02:53,720 --> 00:02:57,080 Speaker 1: for informal breaks in addition to letting you put a 48 00:02:57,160 --> 00:03:00,560 Speaker 1: time limit on the breaks, which are kind of feel 49 00:03:00,560 --> 00:03:03,000 Speaker 1: like corridor conversations or be it with a time limit, 50 00:03:03,000 --> 00:03:06,600 Speaker 1: which to me feels somewhat efficient. Now, another thing that 51 00:03:06,600 --> 00:03:09,959 Speaker 1: you might want to try is renting a virtual office. 52 00:03:10,280 --> 00:03:14,200 Speaker 1: So if scheduling water cooler conversations feels contrived, another solution 53 00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:17,880 Speaker 1: is to create a virtual office, so using software such 54 00:03:17,880 --> 00:03:22,760 Speaker 1: as Tandem tand EM, you can be working with your 55 00:03:22,800 --> 00:03:27,040 Speaker 1: co workers, albeit virtually, and can interrupt and collaborate on 56 00:03:27,080 --> 00:03:32,480 Speaker 1: digital documents spontaneously, just like you would in a physical office. Alternatively, 57 00:03:33,240 --> 00:03:36,760 Speaker 1: a method we have experimented with at Inventium is running 58 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:41,080 Speaker 1: virtual caves so, inspired by a company called cave Date, 59 00:03:41,280 --> 00:03:44,520 Speaker 1: every couple of weeks we schedule two to three hour 60 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:48,600 Speaker 1: blocks of time for the entire team. Everyone brings along 61 00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:51,120 Speaker 1: tasks that they want to complete, and we all are 62 00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:54,480 Speaker 1: gone to Google hangouts and have a brief chat about 63 00:03:54,480 --> 00:03:56,960 Speaker 1: what we'll be working on, and then we schedule a 64 00:03:57,000 --> 00:04:00,360 Speaker 1: halfway break for chitchat, which is essentially water cooler comonation, 65 00:04:00,800 --> 00:04:03,320 Speaker 1: and then we just get on with it. So research 66 00:04:03,400 --> 00:04:07,800 Speaker 1: demonstrates that when accountability is increased at the team level, 67 00:04:08,040 --> 00:04:11,160 Speaker 1: as it is through running a virtual cave, teams actually 68 00:04:11,200 --> 00:04:15,920 Speaker 1: become more interdependent, experience higher success, and are more satisfied 69 00:04:15,960 --> 00:04:20,240 Speaker 1: with fellow team members. So in addition to promoting serendipitous conversation, 70 00:04:20,640 --> 00:04:24,640 Speaker 1: we also get a great deal of work done. Now 71 00:04:24,680 --> 00:04:26,080 Speaker 1: a couple of other things that you might want to 72 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:28,840 Speaker 1: think about now. This third tip, I just call it 73 00:04:28,880 --> 00:04:32,599 Speaker 1: take five because while technology solutions abound, going old school 74 00:04:32,640 --> 00:04:35,880 Speaker 1: and getting on the phone can have its advantages. One 75 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:38,919 Speaker 1: of the challenges from working from home is that we 76 00:04:39,040 --> 00:04:42,240 Speaker 1: can often go for too long without a proper break 77 00:04:42,320 --> 00:04:45,800 Speaker 1: thanks to back to back zoom meetings. So research from 78 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:48,800 Speaker 1: the University of Colorado uncovered that there is an optimal 79 00:04:48,880 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: length of time for breaks. The researchers found that, in 80 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:56,039 Speaker 1: contrast to one thirty minute break. Hourly five minute walking 81 00:04:56,120 --> 00:04:59,719 Speaker 1: breaks boost energy, shop and focus, improve mood, and reduce 82 00:04:59,720 --> 00:05:03,400 Speaker 1: feel fatigue in the afternoon more effectively. So as such, 83 00:05:03,400 --> 00:05:06,320 Speaker 1: try to take multiple short breaks throughout the day and 84 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:09,400 Speaker 1: use this time to either organize a quick call with 85 00:05:09,560 --> 00:05:14,080 Speaker 1: coworkers or maybe call them spontaneously for some serendipitous conversation. 86 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:19,760 Speaker 1: My final tip is to curate your virtual background. It's 87 00:05:19,760 --> 00:05:22,160 Speaker 1: one of the best ways to promote creativity is to 88 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:25,320 Speaker 1: surround the brain with lots of diverse stimulus, which will 89 00:05:25,360 --> 00:05:30,160 Speaker 1: help derive more creative water cooler conversations. Exposure to diverse 90 00:05:30,200 --> 00:05:33,359 Speaker 1: and random stimulus triggers more thoughts in the brain, which 91 00:05:33,440 --> 00:05:36,240 Speaker 1: increases the number of new thoughts and ideas that pop up. 92 00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:40,360 Speaker 1: So if your virtual backdrop is a plain white wall, 93 00:05:40,839 --> 00:05:44,719 Speaker 1: this does not bode well for promoting creativity with your 94 00:05:44,720 --> 00:05:50,160 Speaker 1: co workers. Instead, curate your background and consider changing it regularly. 95 00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:55,360 Speaker 1: Australian finance reporter Alan Cohler changes the books on display 96 00:05:55,720 --> 00:06:00,720 Speaker 1: at his desk every day, provoking much online conversation. Likewise, 97 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:05,320 Speaker 1: play around with quirky virtual backgrounds to promote diverse thinking. 98 00:06:06,120 --> 00:06:09,000 Speaker 1: So while it's easy to lament the death of serendipitous 99 00:06:09,080 --> 00:06:13,520 Speaker 1: conversation in the virtual world. Start consciously curating the new 100 00:06:13,680 --> 00:06:19,680 Speaker 1: version of these conversations and watch the ideas flow. That 101 00:06:19,839 --> 00:06:23,440 Speaker 1: is it for today's show. If you found this episode useful, 102 00:06:23,480 --> 00:06:25,760 Speaker 1: why not share it with someone else that you think 103 00:06:25,880 --> 00:06:29,040 Speaker 1: could benefit. And a big shout out to everyone that 104 00:06:29,080 --> 00:06:33,599 Speaker 1: has left reviews for How I Work. It's simply awesome. 105 00:06:33,640 --> 00:06:36,080 Speaker 1: It brings a huge smile to my face whenever I 106 00:06:36,080 --> 00:06:38,400 Speaker 1: get to read a new review and get listener feedback. 107 00:06:38,480 --> 00:06:41,200 Speaker 1: So thank you for everyone that has done that. That 108 00:06:41,279 --> 00:06:43,240 Speaker 1: is it for today's show and I will see you 109 00:06:43,480 --> 00:06:44,039 Speaker 1: next time.