Background Noise on Conference Calls Can be very Disruptive
By Bob Branco
June 21, 2020
Recently, I was at a virtual meeting of a visually impaired persons support group in my city. The meeting was held on a phone conference where many people participated. Quite often during the phone meeting, I heard cars going by, bags being ripped open, and personal conversations in the background.
First of all, let me say that it’s okay to multitask during phone conferences. I can understand why we all have to do it from time to time. While we are in virtual meetings, we may have to wash dishes, open a bag of potato chips, flush a toilet, answer the door, cough, etc. I’ve been involved in many phone conferences where there is unwanted noise. Noise disrupts the meeting, and we can’t hear what people say. If someone has to multitask during a phone conference, the best way to solve the problem with background noise is to mute the phone. When the task is complete, and if the person wants to continue participating in the meeting, then the phone is unmuted.
I know that some of us don’t realize that other tasks create unnecessary noise on the conference. Perhaps our phones pick up signals better than we expect. Just keep in mind the importance of the conference, as well as the power of the telephone.
