Screen sharing is a useful tool for hosting a virtual meeting and presentation, but, if not fully prepared, can lead to unwanted blunders. Here are 5 ways to avoid them.
- Silence Desktop Notifications – by setting notifications to silent or do not disturb, you can prevent your participants from seeing potentially embarrassing desktop notifications. Windows has a built-in featured called Focus Assist that does just this. Simply go to Settings > System > Focus Assist, and toggle When I’m duplicating my display to On. Mac users can employ a third-party app like Muzzle to automate this process. When screen sharing, Muzzle automatically toggles on mac OS’s built-in Do Not Disturb mode so you’ll never forget. Check out the Muzzle website for example awkward texts and notifications you can prevent your colleagues from seeing.)
- Be Prepared – Before you start your meeting, it’s a good idea to have all materials, documents, and programs open and readily accessible to share with your participants. It is also recommended that you join the meeting at least 5 minutes before the meeting start time to get your presentation ready and greet participants.
- Avoid Distractions – Close all unnecessary tabs, programs, and applications during your screen sharing session. Having too many programs open can be a distraction and make it difficult to find what you’re looking for during a presentation.
- Don’t be fooled…they see you! When you are sharing your screen, other participants can see everything you do – on your computer and on camera. Save yourself from an awkward situation by turning off screen sharing before straying onto other programs and websites. And, as always, It is important to maintain professional etiquette when video conferencing to make a good impression.
- Test, Test, Test – we’ve all been burned by technology failing us in some way. Before your meeting, invite a few co-workers to join a run-through meeting to ensure your display and audio are working correctly and the presentation is displaying and functioning as intended.
In a nutshell, do your best to stay organized and maintain your professionalism…the rest will fall into place.
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