Influencing Through a Tile

Let’s get real.

In a virtual meeting, you’re a 2x2-inch postage stamp fighting for attention against email pings, grocery deliveries, and that oddly aggressive squirrel outside your listener’s window.

Welcome to the big leagues of influence...the small tile world.

Here’s the deal: if you think your listeners are automatically tuned into your brilliance because you showed up on time and clicked “Unmute,” think again. Influence isn't given because you have the floor (or the screen); it’s earned, Monday to Monday®. Yes, that includes your tiny Zoom square. If you want to make a big impact in a small space, here's how:

Stop Looking at Yourself

Your audience can detect self-absorption a mile away — even in pixelated form.

That tiny window showing your face? It's a trap. Close the self-view. You’ll instantly stop performing for yourself and start connecting with your audience. Eye connection (yes, with your camera, not your screen) creates trust. It screams: “I'm here for you.” Not “I'm here for my own TED Talk audition.”

Tip: Place a sticky note with a smiley face next to your webcam. It’ll help remind you where your real "audience" is sitting.

Bring the Energy…Without Becoming a Cartoon

Virtual drains energy faster than your iPhone at 5%. What feels "normal" in person comes across like a snooze-fest online.

Here’s the trick: dial up your energy by about 15%. Speak slightly faster, inflect more often, gesture with purpose — but for the love of Wi-Fi, don’t flail like one of those inflatable car dealership tube men.

Tip: Sit on the edge of your seat. This naturally projects energy through the screen without making you look like you've downed six Red Bulls before logging on.

Frame Yourself Like You Mean It

Your listeners are visual creatures. If you're slouching off-center, half-lit like you’re filming a witness protection interview, you're silently screaming, "I don't care."

Your tile should show your head and shoulders, with your eyes about one-third from the top of the frame. Bright, even lighting. Clean background. It looks like you wanted to attend this meeting.

Tip: Before your meeting, open your camera app and do a 10-second “frame check.” Would you hire yourself? Would you trust yourself? If not, fix it.

Less is More. Way More.

Long-winded rambling in a virtual meeting is like bad karaoke: painful, embarrassing, and impossible to unhear. Brevity is your best friend. Make your point crisply. Then, stop talking.

Influence is about making your listeners want to hear more, not wonder how many emails they can answer while you’re still talking.

Tip: Challenge yourself: Say what you need to say in one breath. If you have to gasp for air halfway through a sentence, you’re overdoing it.

Bottom Line: In a virtual meeting, influence isn’t about being louder, flashier, or taking up verbal real estate. It’s about showing up consistently polished, energetic, and focused...even when you're the size of a Tic Tac on someone's laptop screen.

Remember: Big influence, small tile. No excuses.