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Good morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the new corner office, the podcast where we share strategies for thriving in the new world of work, where location and hours are more flexible than in the past.

Today's tip is to really think about your backdrop. After a month of social distancing,

Eve long since realized that when you're on a video call, your colleagues see whatever is behind

you. You may have already experimented with goofy backdrops.

I get it.

We're all desperate for entertainment in tough times.

But even when things return to normal, video calls are going to be a more common form of communication.

So now it's time to recognize that your backdrop can actually be a form of personal branding.

By thinking about what you're sharing a screen with, you have a chance to shape how people perceive you.

And yes, that may be superficial, just as clothes and haircuts are superficial.

But if you think about those things, there's no reason not to put some proactive thought

into what's floating behind your head. I'll offer three principles for thinking about your backdrop

and your personal brand. First, consider what message you want to convey. I would venture that all of us

want to communicate to our colleagues that we are steady

and self-possessed. There may be disorder and uncertainty in the world, but we are the calm

in the storm. You know better than to have a pile of laundry or an unmade bed in your background.

But even chaotic bookshelves and messy stacks of paper might be problematic. So either

turn it minimalist or shift your position until you find a view behind you that's more appropriate for work.

Second, be aware that anything in view in the backdrop is fair game for conversation. This should be taken as both warning and opportunity.

If there are parts of your personal life that you don't want to discuss, like, say, a photo of a

relative who passed away recently, find a new home for it. Of course, you've also seen in dozens of

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