Leading a Group over Video
Leading a group over video isn’t the same as in person. There are new challenges and new opportunities. Here are some tips gathered from people who do this for a living, my experience, and advice from past group leaders like you.
1. Be present
Engage people as if you were there in the room with them. Make eye contact with the camera. Respond to what they are saying with your body language, even if just a gentle nod. Paraphrase what people have just said to let them know you heard them.
Online, you should be even more present than you would be in real life to compensate for the distancing effect of the screen. Sometimes, the greatest gift we can give people in anxious times is being fully present.
2. Ground the gathering
When we meet over video, we lose a lot of context. A moment ago, we might have been on a work call or getting the mail. As the meeting host, you can provide a sense of grounding for the meeting. State why you are gathered. Set the scene. Describe where you are. Announce when people “arrive.” Ask people to share their names and where they are.
3. Less is More
45 minutes goes by fast, especially once you get all 4-6 people responding. I typically begin with a round of check-ins (Each person responding to: How are you this week?), and after that, found that one topic and 2-3 well-chosen questions easily filled the time. Keep plans simple.
4. Be directive
Without all the non-verbal cues, there can sometimes be confusion over video about who should speak when. As the group leader, you can easily solve that with some gentle direction, like inviting each person to share one by one.
If organic conversation starts to flow, that’s great. Just know those moments of “what’s happening? should I talk?” are natural over video, and as the group leader you can solve that by introducing some structure.
5. Embrace real & imperfect
There is sometimes desire to perfectly polish our spaces before hopping on video chat. It’s certainly a good idea to tidy up, and be in a space where you can be fully present, but don’t worry too much.
Consider this: One gift of meeting over video, compared to gathering at Advent, is that we get a momentary window into each other’s worlds, and this is an opportunity to get to know each other in a new way.
Since the purpose of our gatherings is building relationships and community, my advice would be to embrace the realness. The cat hopping into frame or the laundry in the background give people a chance to get to know you, and also sets the tone: this is an informal space where we can be real. Remember, YOU are a wonderful imperfect human and people will be lucky and happy to get to know the real you.
From a past group leader, Amanda: “My one piece of advice would be to trust yourself and remember it’s not about being perfect, but about the conversations that flow. I was nervous every time but as we all started to talk I relaxed and enjoyed the 45 mins or so that we were all together.”
In other words, YOU CAN DO IT! Advent’s mission is to welcome all people to experience and live out God’s love. Remember God’s grace and love for you, just as you are, and that God has equipped you share God’s love with others. Good luck (: