In the Age of Zoom, the Forgotten Power of the Face-to-Face Meeting
Much has been written about the crisis of loneliness that plagues society due, at least in large part, to our collective obsession with social media. But little attention has been given to our rising professional isolation due to our increasingly virtual worlds — especially post-pandemic now that we have grown accustomed to the ease and convenience of Zoom.
And while live video chat certainly gives us communications power, productivity and convenience, we spend far less time meeting together face-to-face in person. Lost in that equation is the unique power of human interaction and potentially game-changing serendipity that comes from connecting with one another in the same physical space.
This became obvious to me at TheWrap’s recent annual TheGrill conference in Los Angeles, where I moderated two panel discussions and spent the day speaking with attendees without a webcam. Throughout the day, I quietly marveled at the number of people I bumped into with whom I have communicated regularly via Zoom, sometimes for years but had never actually met.
And here’s the thing. Because we actually did share the same physical space for the first time, our conversation veered into a broader range of topics than it would have had we only scheduled a 30-minute Zoom —and then rushed off to our next one. Our casual “bump in” at TheGrill turned into a sit-down meeting that lasted for nearly one hour – one that may lead to entirely new mutually beneficial business opportunities.
This was no one-off event. Similar experiences happened throughout the day both with executives I knew, and with attendees who had either watched my panels or read my weekly column. Once again, these entirely new and unplanned live in-person interactions identified areas of potential mutual professional benefit. Equally importantly, those live conversations led to mutual learning about not only the topics at hand, but others that never would have crossed our minds.
For years, and for the sake of convenience, I’ve increasingly set aside the in-person meeting in favor of the virtual. It was already something with which I was very comfortable, since nearly two decades ago I served as CEO of SightSpeed, a company that pioneered simple video chat over the Internet well before Zoom. (We ultimately sold the company to Logitech.) I ate what we sold at the time, significantly reducing my travel from San Diego (where I live) to the Bay Area (where SightSpeed was based) by using our own video service. And since that time, because I live and work in San Diego, I now rarely travel up to LA or elsewhere for business, even though my professional life is essentially centered in the hearts of Hollywood and Silicon Valley.
Yes, I can take far more meetings virtually and save on all the hassle of travel – and that brings plenty of positives. But that convenience also comes with a downside – the lost power and serendipity —and frequent new opportunities— that would have come from doing the work and making the time for in-person meetings.
And if anyone doubts the power of the potentially game-changing serendipity that comes from face-to-face interaction, I offer you this personal example. Thirty years ago, I represented notorious rap group N.W.A. in a major First Amendment case. One Tuesday night back in the day, my main contact – the group’s manager – invited me to dinner. Given my workload at the law firm, my first reaction at the time was to reject the offer. But ultimately, I decided to go, and it was that evening that my now, and then future, wife Luisa just happened to be working at that restaurant (Mezzaluna in Beverly Hills). And it was because I went out that night that met my life partner, who transformed my life. Had I stayed home, my life would be entirely different.
One of my main pieces of advice to my two kids (one works at WME and the other is studying at NYU Tisch to become a filmmaker) is to inject themselves into the bloodstream of life. Just like Forrest Gump, you never know what you’re gonna get.
Given my own recent experience at TheGrill, I now plan to heed my own advice to them and spend more time scheduling in-person meetings. I also plan to add a sense of community by curating an ongoing series of intimate roundtable discussions where leading artists, creators, entrepreneurs, executives and influencers in the worlds of media, entertainment and tech can break bread together and discuss pressing issues of the day – and also, simply to let the serendipity flow. I’ll call these “Fearless Media” roundtables (named after my weekly newsletter of the same name).
If you’d like to apply to be part of my new “Fearless Media” roundtable group, reach out to me at peter@creativemedia.biz and let me know a little about you, why you are interested and the unique perspectives and passion you can bring to the table for the benefit of others. I anticipate quarterly dinners at first of not more than 10 people representing a cross-section of media, music, entertainment and tech.
For those of you interested in learning more, visit Peter’s firm Creative Media at creativemedia.biz and follow him on Twitter/X @pcsathy.
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