084 - Beyond Zoom: Behind the Scenes of Toasty, a new video conferencing tool with Kevon Cheung

Online meetings have risen in popularity since the COVID-19 outbreak, but they must cover more than ticking boxes from the agenda list. Creating stronger bonds and giving people that human connection they’ve lost from in-person meetings is so important. After all, we’re all in this together. The more we can be there for each other, the better. Kevon Cheung is the Co-Founder and CEO of Toasty.ai, a new video conferencing tool that simplifies the process of meeting facilitation so that participants can express and collaborate freely. I was so happy to have him join me in this episode of workshops work because I wanted to know how Toasty works and how it combines facilitation exercises with a shared Google drive, amongst other things. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did. I hope it helps you see how you can bring the human element back into your meetings, conferences, and workshops. In this episode, find out about: How and why Kevon launched Toasty.ai How to change the dynamics of an online meeting What Toasty is and how facilitators can use it to create engaging meetings Why participants need to open up and how to make people feel comfortable to do so How to stop participants from getting distracted Why you must have a plan but also the freedom to adjust according to the flow of the session How to stimulate a group’s creativity using fun exercises Don’t miss the next show: Subscribe to the show with your favourite podcast player. A huge thank you must go to SessionLab, the sponsor of Workshops Work. Claim your free two months of SessionLab Pro now – this deal is exclusive to Workshops Work listeners! Questions and Answers [01:45] Would you call yourself a facilitator  [05:08] What is the hashtag you would give yourself? [07:30] How did you come up with the idea of putting a new video conferencing tool out there? [09:34] What changes the dynamic of a meeting? [11:33] What have you learned from your conversations with facilitators? [14:53] How do you minimise the awkward feeling of when the first participants join the call? [16:10] How did you change your own team meetings since learning about the art of facilitation? [20:40] What has been the most surprising thing that happened in one of these calls? [23:44] What would you recommend to someone who still hosts these boring meetings where they talk a lot, and feel frustrated at the end? [26:09] Why do you think it takes longer in the virtual space than in the physical? [27:31] How can you decide whether you're overdoing it and then it feels awkward, or whether you’re reluctant because of habit? [29:54] What are the biggest challenges when translating solutions to problems to the software? [32:50] Why did it take so long to have more competitors to platforms like Zoom? [35:13] What are the prerequisites for these platforms to stay or leave? [38:06] What makes a workshop fail? [42:43] After all of your experience with online meetings, what did you learn about offline meetings? [44:55] Is there anything you would like to share that we haven’t touched upon? [47:32] What is the main takeaway you would like listeners to take from our conversation? Links Toasty.ai Connect to Kevon Cheung Kevon’s LinkedIn Any thoughts? Share them with us! Support the show ✨✨✨ If you miss the "workshops work" podcast, join us on Substack, where Myriam builds a Podcast Club with monthly gatherings around old episodes: https://myriamhadnes.substack.com/