The best way to use Zoom

As we enter the holiday season, I’m struggling to think of a way to celebrate the end of a successful year with the Precedent team. In this uncertain phase of the pandemic, we can sort of get together in person, but that option comes with layers of restrictions, vaccine passports and general anxiety. At the same time, I don’t think anyone would be excited to play a game of online Pictionary or take part in a virtual wine tasting. In fact, the greatest gift you could give a colleague this month might be one less Zoom meeting.

Despite my holiday-party angst, however, I have to acknowledge that some things have been better on Zoom. Here’s my best example. Somewhere deep in the midst of a cold and lonely lockdown season, I invited a group of women to join me on Zoom for what I called Money Club. We met on Sundays to talk about subjects like wills, life insurance and investing. These are not the most delightful conversation topics, but, as the lockdown ticked along, I started to look forward to our weekly meetings. We could ask one another for advice, share our frustrations and celebrate our achievements.

As our club gained momentum, we invited guest speakers to attend our Zoom sessions. We heard from a wills and estates lawyer, a financial advisor and an accountant. Over time, we managed to cross a lot of items off our financial to-do lists while having some unexpected fun as a group.

Money Club could not have existed without Zoom. All of us benefited from the ability to tackle tough topics from the comfort and privacy of our own homes. It made socializing and networking with other women pretty easy: we could get together without finding a babysitter or having to spend a lot of time in transit to meet up somewhere. And Zoom provided our guest speakers with the flexibility to pop in virtually to our call without losing an entire evening. Money Club was Zoom at its best.

As we navigate the return to the office, it’s clear that we aren’t going back to the old days. The way we work has changed forever. But the success of Money Club has helped me imagine how we can, and should, bring tools like Zoom into the brave new world of post-pandemic work.

Wishing you happy holiday parties in whatever form they take. Have a safe and healthy new year.