Agree with those thoughts and would add that especially for things like 1 on 1s, you need to see someone's reaction to questions you ask.
For instance, I talk about feedback from a team member for you...are you defensive? are you surprised? upset? It's hard to tell all that just from someone's voice or the silence on the other end of the phone line.
As for appearance, that really isn't that important:
1) Skype is now giving you the option to blur the background when on video, which hopefully becomes a common feature in the market
2) Zoom and Google both have "visual correction" which makes everyone look better on the call
3) Most important, as a manager I don't care if you look like a model or Gary Busey...it's just about reading your reactions and being able to create a connection. I'm sorry if you've had bad managers who treat that like an inquisition, but for good managers, those that care (and read 6,000 word essays so they get better) really benefit from this because they use it from a position of trying to help.
For instance, I talk about feedback from a team member for you...are you defensive? are you surprised? upset? It's hard to tell all that just from someone's voice or the silence on the other end of the phone line.
As for appearance, that really isn't that important:
1) Skype is now giving you the option to blur the background when on video, which hopefully becomes a common feature in the market
2) Zoom and Google both have "visual correction" which makes everyone look better on the call
3) Most important, as a manager I don't care if you look like a model or Gary Busey...it's just about reading your reactions and being able to create a connection. I'm sorry if you've had bad managers who treat that like an inquisition, but for good managers, those that care (and read 6,000 word essays so they get better) really benefit from this because they use it from a position of trying to help.