Sounds like an oxymoron right? By now you’ve probably gotten to the point where you feel like you’re losing your mind and trust me, you aren’t alone. Hopefully, you’ve got a chance to practice and put in place some of my suggestions from last week or the tips I provided as well on my social media last week about working from home (WFH). I think we’ve all gotten a chance to be creative and find workarounds but again many of us haven’t been able to find a good way to connect. Social connection is so important, by nature we’re social creatures and crave that interaction. Although we can’t do it at the same level we may be used to, here are some ways to help you overcome this.

Apps and other ways to maintain social connection during the time of Social Distancing:

FaceTime

Ok, so I know this is nothing mind-blowing but if you haven’t used FaceTime yet or never wanted to before (trust me, I know how you feel) then now is the time to brush the dust off and give it a shot. If you have any sort of Apple device you have the ability to FaceTime. Whether it’s on your iPhone, iPad, MacBook, or iMac; most recent models of Apple products have the ability to FaceTime. You can use this with anyone who also has an Apple Device. You can FaceTime to their phone number or to their email/iCloud account.

Zoom

If you’re new to Zoom, it’s a commonly used app among professionals to hold meetings or to interact with clients. Many therapists I know use it for their practice. The basic Zoom is free and only requires minimal information to sign up. If you want to use it for larger business purposes they have a variety of service plans but like I said the basic Zoom is free and allows you to have up to 40-minute “meetings.” You can also connect to multiple individuals. They have recently put new protocols in place to make it more secure like verifying who is joining or sending someone a passcode they have to enter in order to join a meeting.

Microsoft Teams

It is my understanding that anyone with a Microsoft 365 account or Office loaded has the ability to use Teams. I know that we use it at work and you can Instant Message (IM for those of you in the beginning of the internet) and you can also have video conferences. You can either connect through the computer audio/video/both or you can listen in through your phone by having it call your phone. It’s a great way to connect with your colleagues and also your loved ones.

HouseParty

HouseParty is an app I was recently introduced to during this Coronavirus pandemic. It’s a free social videoing app, you can get a group of people together and play fun games like HeadsUp, Dice, Trivia, etc etc. It’s pretty nifty!

MarcoPolo

MarcoPolo is sort of like Snapchat only the videos are saved and stored like text messages and emails. It’s not real-time video calls but a pre-recorded video that you can choose who sees it. So rather than sending texts, you can send a video message that is a few seconds long.

Facebook Messenger

You can also do video chats with your friends on Facebook Messenger. You open a conversation like you normally would and there is an icon that looks like a video recorder, if you click on that you will be able to do a video chat with a friend.

Netflix

Apparently, this isn’t a new feature but it has gotten a lot of talk since the Social Distancing went into place. It’s a web browser extension that allows multiple people to watch the same video at the same time and you can use any of the video services previously mentioned to chat with your friends as you watch.

So now that you know the various options for video socializing what should you do? Many of them have fun games you can play, silly face filters you can entertain yourself for hours with but there are other things you can do. Watch movies like mentioned above on Netflix, share about your day as if you were in person or even have “happy hour” with or without adult beverages, do a workout together or host a book club night. The possibilities are endless. It isn’t the same as being in the same room but it’s also a way to stay connected.

If you’d like to stay connected in other ways or have any questions about these services, I am not an expert but can do my best to point you in the right direction. Feel free to email me at Colleen@ScatteredPotential.com, subscribe to my blog or my newsletter by filling out the form below. Follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.