Navigating Uncharted Territory: Moving Toward our First Virtual Convention with a Little Less Stress and a Little More Yesssssss

by Jessica Beecham

From the Editor: When I think of Jessica what comes to mind is that she is the wellness person. Whether one is looking for physical health, mental health, or spiritual health, Jessica has strategies she is willing to share. Not only is she willing, but as you will see in this article, she is a very able writer. Enjoy what she has to say about our upcoming national convention:

The announcement of our first-ever virtual convention of the National Federation of the Blind has stirred a great deal of mixed conversation. Some of us are intrigued by the idea of potentially hosting the largest gathering of blind people in the world. Others are eager for the opportunity to participate without the expenses that are customarily associated with convention travel, hotel, and food. Still others are thrilled at the idea that they will be able to get to every meeting on time without getting lost in a huge convention hotel at least once.

Although there is much to be excited about, you may be experiencing a bit of anxiety around the idea of participating in a convention-packed week over Zoom or another virtual platform. Currently, Zoom fatigue is a hot topic. A simple Google search will reveal articles in leading publications including National Geographic, BBC, Forbes, Psychology Today, Harvard Business Review, USA Today, and on and on and on, all covering the topic of the stress associated with increased video conferencing.

While we may have the advantage of not having to stare lovingly into the eyes of our dear colleagues for hours at a time through a screen, we certainly experience other aspects of virtual conferencing which can induce stress. These include learning to navigate a new virtual environment, poor internet quality, technology failure, endless sitting, figuring out how and when to jump in and talk without stepping on someone else, audio delays, being tethered to our technology, and more.

Just like every convention, the experience will not be stress free. Hopefully, these tips will help reduce stress so that we can make our first virtual convention one that we will fondly remember.

Create the Optimum Convention Environment

One of the nice things about virtual convention is that one can participate from anywhere. Want to start your day with a meeting from bed? Go for it! How about a lunchtime meeting on your stoop or patio? This is just fine. Whether it is your couch, kitchen table, office desk, or favorite comfortable recliner, identify several different places from which you might like to enjoy convention, and make sure that they are set up in such a way that is conducive to your success. This might mean making sure that you have a charged device available or that you have access to a charger. It might also mean doing what you can to eliminate background noise. If you want to participate in a place that might be noisy, do it in a meeting where you will have a listening role as opposed to an active speaking role, and be sure you are muted. Zoom, or most other video conferencing platforms for that matter, support a variety of access methods. Just as an example, if you have a home phone, computer, cell phone, and tablet, you have four ways that you can access the convention. Well-charged devices and handy access to accessories such as chargers, headsets with microphones, and note taking devices will play a major part in a less stressful and more productive convention experience.

Learn the Platform

Whether we use Zoom, another video conferencing platform, or something else entirely, learning the platform will be key to a smooth convention. Once we know a little more about what convention is going to look like, there will be training available. Take advantage and learn the features. Knowing how to seek the floor, ask a question, mute and unmute, vote, or whatever else may be possible will make you more comfortable. If the majority of users are comfortable and confident in the use of the platform, it will make for much smoother and more enjoyable meetings.

Eat Healthy

Just as with an in-person convention, our food and beverage choices will affect our experience. Starting your day with a solid breakfast, fueling with healthy snacks throughout the day, drinking lots of water, and making sensible lunch and dinner choices will give your body the energy it needs for a long and information-packed day. This should be the easiest convention ever to make solid food choices because if you don’t buy it, you can’t eat it. Planning your convention meals and snacks, shopping ahead, and doing a little prep for those extra busy times when your listening meetings are slim and your active participation level is high will help you stick to better food choices. You may choose to splurge from time to time, but Door Dash and UberEATS do not have to be your go-to. Remember: When you have a listening role in a meeting, you can prepare your meal and eat your healthy dinner during the programming. Just make sure you are muted; nobody likes hearing your loud chewing noise.

Move

Although it sounds a bit counterintuitive, sitting actually makes us more tired. Whether virtual or in person, getting up and moving is an excellent way to tolerate long days at convention. When you have a listening role in a meeting, you are free to get up, get coffee, move, stretch, or even walk around a room. Since the onset of COVID-19, several people have participated in movement activities while listening to meetings. Their activities have included riding stationary bikes or restorators, walking on treadmills, doing yoga, walking around the room, or taking trips up and down stairs. These are all great ways to incorporate movement when you are not actively speaking or leading a meeting. When you do have a leadership role, it is good to plan some movement time before or after the meeting where you will be spending significant time sitting. The Sports and Recreation Division plans to provide pre-recorded fit breaks that will be available for convention attendees. We will also have prerecorded workouts that can be accessed any time, so working out at your convenience will be easier than ever. Join our Facebook group to get access to our fit breaks, workouts, and convention-related movement challenges.

Sleep

What? Who sleeps during national convention? It is likely that many convention attendees will find that virtual convention is a bit more mentally fatiguing. Getting eight hours of sleep each night will increase your energy and stamina throughout the day. Whenever possible, setting a time for bed and a time to wake up will help in establishing and reinforcing a good sleep schedule. Many of us have assumed being an adult means freedom from a bedtime, but adhering to a predictable sleep schedule isn't about being an adult; it's really about being mentally and physically healthy. In these times of social distancing, we must make our own structure—setting our goals and relying on self-discipline where previously we have relied on others.

Plan Ahead

Each year, once the convention agenda is released, many of us go through and plan our entire week. Even though we do not have to worry about navigating from meeting to meeting in a large convention hotel, having a plan is still essential. Develop a system that allows for easy access to meeting login credentials, information about the meeting, and whether you have a role above and beyond that of a listener. You can add this information to your calendar, keep hardcopy or electronic notes, record information to a Victor Stream, or pretty much use any system that is easy for you to manage independently and quickly. This will help you to be at your best and get the most out of your meetings.

If you have a meeting where you plan to participate or have a major leadership role, it is important to plan to be in a quiet environment with a device nearby or a headset with a microphone so that you can be easily heard. Since presenters/speakers may be asked to have their cameras on, you can plan to be in an area that is clean and uncluttered. Since it is customary to dress to impress at convention, it will also be important to make sure that the portion of you which is in camera view is appropriately clad in business attire. Consider having someone check out the view before the meeting begins to make sure that you are in the camera frame and that your visible background looks great.

There will likely be meetings with information you want to remember, so you should be set up with the ability to take notes. You don't want to be scrambling at the last second and missing content. You can plan meal, snack, and movement times around meetings where you will be a listener. Also, making sure to leave time between meetings for a mental break is a great idea.

The best laid plans do not always come to fruition. Convention is jam-packed. Although we are making every attempt to keep this virtual convention to a manageable number of meetings, there will be more content than any person can attend. Do what many of us do at conventions and ask someone to attend a session for you and report on it. You can do likewise when there is a meeting they are missing but would like to attend.

Even if you have planned to attend a meeting, give yourself permission to skip it or take a break if needed. The virtual experience will be new for all of us, and it is important that we make our mental health a priority. Convention should be FUN, and it is not necessary that every one of us attend every meeting.

Tips for Planning Content

For those of us who are planning content, it is good to remember that not every meeting needs to be long. If you can cover the content that needs to be covered in half an hour, then that amount of time is sufficient for the meeting. People will be in the virtual space from early in the morning to late at night. It is important that we think about how to make our meetings effective, memorable, and concise. If it makes sense, explore ways to provide content that people can access at their convenience. This reduces the number of meetings on the agenda and still provides convention attendees with quality content that they can enjoy during and after convention 

Do Something Fun

This is a great year to add some element of fun to the convention. If your area’s social distancing guidelines and your health permit small gatherings, get together with friends or chapter members and enjoy portions of the convention together. Maybe listen to a session while catching sun by the pool. Have a banquet party at which a group gets together and cooks or orders a delicious meal. It might be the best banquet meal you have ever had. A strong cocktail (optional), good food, Federation family, and an inspiring banquet address from President Riccobono is a sure recipe for a fantastic banquet. One of the most important aspects of a National Federation of the Blind convention is spreading love, so find ways to have fun and spread the Federation love to others.

Although it is perfectly fine to be a little nervous about a new convention format, we have a lot to be excited about. Take a deep breath, plan, eat, move, sleep, have fun, and let’s go build the National Federation of the Blind!