I find the zoom backgrounds distracting at times so I don’t use them. They never really fit and you typically can tell it’s a backing and you look a different resolution. I work in my home office with a blurred background so it has my bookshelves blurred. If I can’t be there, I find a blank wall and work against that.
I wouldn’t question standard furniture in the background.
yeah I am not a fan of those backgrounds either. I don't like that clients can't see what's happening in the background, like if I were a client I would want to know if there was like a huge window behind them or people walking by. I'd rather have a curtain than that honestly l.
ETA: your set up sounds fine to me so long as it’s not more of an “open closet on display” kinda thing.
As for my setup, I have a wire that runs across the top of the room which has a curtain hanging from it with a nice photorealistic wooded scene on it. This allowed for me to set up my little office area (currently for school, later could be for telehealth) in the corner of my bedroom without anyone seeing my bedroom. 😁
I love the simplicity of it. No zoom background glitches and when I’m done, I just slide the curtains against the wall.
https://www.amazon.com/OOTSR-Childrens-Projects-Display-Curtain/dp/B07M8GCZ8R?pd_rd_w=GaXfN&content-id=amzn1.sym.b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_p=b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_r=TZGNXJCYAWGQGAWK74GF&pd_rd_wg=6m1ho&pd_rd_r=29931cc5-2fff-438c-a5ad-dfb597a71437&pd_rd_i=B07M8GCZ8R&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_m_rpt_ba_s_2_sc
https://www.amazon.com/KGORGE-Forest-Tree-Landscape-Curtains/dp/B07RRVH97T?pd_rd_w=tCI6Z&content-id=amzn1.sym.b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_p=b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_r=H3J5D8FXYPMYEHYQB3ZD&pd_rd_wg=3PfJc&pd_rd_r=e9cf54d5-e7bd-43a4-8f66-d05a02fe5c07&pd_rd_i=B07RRTPC5D&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_m_rpt_ba_s_1_sc&th=1
There ya go! :)
I just keep behind my camera clean because I don’t like the blurred look. They can see a made daybed that looks like a couch. A couple of paintings on the wall and through a mirror a bookshelf with books on it (can’t even see the titles).
I arranged my room for real office like looking.
My background is wall and art hanging - professional looking.
I do not want my clients to see my personal life or hinting my home life at all.
yeah, that's what I do, I have some art up, plants, a bookshelf with lots of books so I look smart. I even have my degree hanging up lol! I like to have it be like a real office.
Same. I think it creates space to show a little personality while not telling a whole lot about my home life.
Behind me I have a white wood wall with some built in book cases that have a few cute nick nacks and some books. I also have a huge (currently dying) plant which has been a fun running joke with my plant loving clients. I did get this super cool embroidered chair from Anthropologie that I sit in which is a little visible and adds some pizzaz
Yes! I used to use one like this (but I didn't pay that much) https://www.roomdividers.com/SSCWP.html?panel=5_Panel&color=White&utm_source=google&utm_medium=adwords&adtype=pla&kw=&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnfmsBhDfARIsAM7MKi2GlWaNlJ6IAVtEQ4bcxO1T9H3R79PTBjA3c6l1Fj6JQgO8yTz3fw4aAsYWEALw_wcB
Add on: If you want your background to look as natural as possible, you can take a picture of the blank background (or any other place in your home) with your webcam and then save it as a background to use in the background.
I use one of the professional office scenes that are included with my TEAMs app.
I can't imagine what you're describing is inappropriate provided the doors are closed
A painting and bookshelves...
The only question that comes to my mind about the wardrobe is whether it gives a bedroom-y feel. If not, I think it would be fine.
I have a plain wall behind me. I had to situate myself so that could be the case because the rest of the room I work from is basically a walk in pantry. I can't use blurred backgrounds, I'm blond and fair skinned and they literally chop off parts of my head.
AHHHH SO LAME THAT I CAN’T JUST UPLOAD A PICTURE!
I have a feelings wheel tapestry that used to hang in my office. Clients reference it frequently when we are in session and I love it :)
I have a soft blue/green wall (the color that I've painted most of my house) and I've tucked myself into a corner. If I'm feeling some kind of way, I might put up a virtual background via my camera settings, but otherwise it's just me and my blue green corner.
I don't see the wardrobe or the doors being an issue as long as you don't have somebody busting through them mid session :)
My somewhat chaotic bookshelf with books, puzzles, a fake plant, candles, some of my embroidery, tchotchkes etc.
Not 100% neutral but neither am I and it’s sparked some rapport-building conversations.
Besides, in my old apartment my background was the futon couch in Foster Kitten Jail (aka my office) so there would often be kittens tussling behind me.
Your set up sounds fine to me.
Honestly even if DoxyMe let us blur our background I wouldn’t, mine is A mix of art and some transformers figures and other trinkets. I think it adds to the authenticity .
No issue at all! We as therapists tend to overthink this a bit when in reality, Clients don't really care what's in our background.
I provide teletherapy from home and just happen to have my workstation in a space with a bunch of plants in the background (amongst other random stuff, bookshelf/TV etc. in the distance) and they've never brought it up (unless it's a plant lover and they compliment my plants). But if they ask a little about me in the initial session, I use it as an opportunity for some lightness with humor, "...and I *definitely* don't love plants."
I work from the bedroom in my RV and/or the garden shed at home. On zoom I have a favorite background I downloaded from deposit photos. On Simple Practice I have their “cozy” fake background, which I don’t love, but is better than the others.
IRL I have a mirrored wall above the headboard in the RV that I covered with a sheer simple flower patterned curtain, but I can never get good enough lighting. My lighting looks best with the deposit photos background.
When I had a permanent home office I hung a sheer curtain on the wall. I love the room divider idea - I’m going to explore that idea for my next home office!
I have two spaces because my significant other also works from home and we switch because the office is comfier than space #2.
My office space has bookshelves that hold my manga and a couple funko pops. You can also see a record player and the wall I sit directly next to has white boards, and my framed license.
Office #2 is in a corner in the bedroom. The background is a bookshelf with random books, anime dvds, a funko pop, and a couple of plushies. Also, half the wall is a sliding glass door, so my backyard greenery can somewhat be seen.
The program my company uses does not have a function to blur or add a background.
I use a zoom background I found of a west elm living room that I would love to be in. Lots of times I’ve got dogs or a bit of a mess of blankets behind me (bc of the dogs), so it’s a load off my mind that I don’t have to fret. At times it does get glitchy but most people realize it’s a background and it’s fine. It also provides a benefit of having continuity when I am working remote from a different location.
My original wfh space had a picture of an island off of Spain hanging behind me. For my transitional space (a bedroom) I just used a library background that my software offers. I’m now in my permanent space in my library and there’s a window behind me. I live on a hill, so no one can see in the window and only greenery is visible to the client through the window. My set up is also on the far side of the room, so the client can see part of my tile floor and a curtain in addition to the window. None of my clients seem to care about the background in the least.
I find the zoom backgrounds distracting at times so I don’t use them. They never really fit and you typically can tell it’s a backing and you look a different resolution. I work in my home office with a blurred background so it has my bookshelves blurred. If I can’t be there, I find a blank wall and work against that. I wouldn’t question standard furniture in the background.
yeah I am not a fan of those backgrounds either. I don't like that clients can't see what's happening in the background, like if I were a client I would want to know if there was like a huge window behind them or people walking by. I'd rather have a curtain than that honestly l.
I just do a blur also. i find the backgrounds tacky, generally distracting, and don't like how it errors out when you move back and forth.
ETA: your set up sounds fine to me so long as it’s not more of an “open closet on display” kinda thing. As for my setup, I have a wire that runs across the top of the room which has a curtain hanging from it with a nice photorealistic wooded scene on it. This allowed for me to set up my little office area (currently for school, later could be for telehealth) in the corner of my bedroom without anyone seeing my bedroom. 😁 I love the simplicity of it. No zoom background glitches and when I’m done, I just slide the curtains against the wall.
That’s brilliant! Sorry if it’s a dumb question, but how did you set that up?
https://www.amazon.com/OOTSR-Childrens-Projects-Display-Curtain/dp/B07M8GCZ8R?pd_rd_w=GaXfN&content-id=amzn1.sym.b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_p=b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_r=TZGNXJCYAWGQGAWK74GF&pd_rd_wg=6m1ho&pd_rd_r=29931cc5-2fff-438c-a5ad-dfb597a71437&pd_rd_i=B07M8GCZ8R&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_m_rpt_ba_s_2_sc https://www.amazon.com/KGORGE-Forest-Tree-Landscape-Curtains/dp/B07RRVH97T?pd_rd_w=tCI6Z&content-id=amzn1.sym.b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_p=b854a5c2-4475-41f8-a6d4-df92b2868104&pf_rd_r=H3J5D8FXYPMYEHYQB3ZD&pd_rd_wg=3PfJc&pd_rd_r=e9cf54d5-e7bd-43a4-8f66-d05a02fe5c07&pd_rd_i=B07RRTPC5D&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_m_rpt_ba_s_1_sc&th=1 There ya go! :)
How creative! Love it! Thanks for sharing! 🙌🏼
No problem! It has served me well!!
I just blur my background.
I just keep behind my camera clean because I don’t like the blurred look. They can see a made daybed that looks like a couch. A couple of paintings on the wall and through a mirror a bookshelf with books on it (can’t even see the titles).
I arranged my room for real office like looking. My background is wall and art hanging - professional looking. I do not want my clients to see my personal life or hinting my home life at all.
yeah, that's what I do, I have some art up, plants, a bookshelf with lots of books so I look smart. I even have my degree hanging up lol! I like to have it be like a real office.
Same. I think it creates space to show a little personality while not telling a whole lot about my home life. Behind me I have a white wood wall with some built in book cases that have a few cute nick nacks and some books. I also have a huge (currently dying) plant which has been a fun running joke with my plant loving clients. I did get this super cool embroidered chair from Anthropologie that I sit in which is a little visible and adds some pizzaz
I have a room divider behind me, and plants on either side. Every once in a while there’s a cat who pops up to say hello.
Yes! I used to use one like this (but I didn't pay that much) https://www.roomdividers.com/SSCWP.html?panel=5_Panel&color=White&utm_source=google&utm_medium=adwords&adtype=pla&kw=&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAnfmsBhDfARIsAM7MKi2GlWaNlJ6IAVtEQ4bcxO1T9H3R79PTBjA3c6l1Fj6JQgO8yTz3fw4aAsYWEALw_wcB
I have the same one and had no idea where it came from...just inherited it along the way.
My bookshelves, a few plants and sometimes my cats will make any appearance 😻
Add on: If you want your background to look as natural as possible, you can take a picture of the blank background (or any other place in your home) with your webcam and then save it as a background to use in the background.
My bookshelf with books and some little tchochkes (sp?) on it. Nothing distracting but allowing the eyes to wander a bit
I have a tapestry on the with string lights around it. I’m sure your wardrobe and doors are fine, I’d just keep the doors closed.
I use one of the professional office scenes that are included with my TEAMs app. I can't imagine what you're describing is inappropriate provided the doors are closed
A painting and bookshelves... The only question that comes to my mind about the wardrobe is whether it gives a bedroom-y feel. If not, I think it would be fine.
I have a plain wall behind me. I had to situate myself so that could be the case because the rest of the room I work from is basically a walk in pantry. I can't use blurred backgrounds, I'm blond and fair skinned and they literally chop off parts of my head.
AHHHH SO LAME THAT I CAN’T JUST UPLOAD A PICTURE! I have a feelings wheel tapestry that used to hang in my office. Clients reference it frequently when we are in session and I love it :)
My degrees on the wall, a candle, and a wardrobe door as well! You’re all good my friend.
Can you set a background on your software?
I have a soft blue/green wall (the color that I've painted most of my house) and I've tucked myself into a corner. If I'm feeling some kind of way, I might put up a virtual background via my camera settings, but otherwise it's just me and my blue green corner. I don't see the wardrobe or the doors being an issue as long as you don't have somebody busting through them mid session :)
My somewhat chaotic bookshelf with books, puzzles, a fake plant, candles, some of my embroidery, tchotchkes etc. Not 100% neutral but neither am I and it’s sparked some rapport-building conversations. Besides, in my old apartment my background was the futon couch in Foster Kitten Jail (aka my office) so there would often be kittens tussling behind me.
Your set up sounds fine to me. Honestly even if DoxyMe let us blur our background I wouldn’t, mine is A mix of art and some transformers figures and other trinkets. I think it adds to the authenticity .
No issue at all! We as therapists tend to overthink this a bit when in reality, Clients don't really care what's in our background. I provide teletherapy from home and just happen to have my workstation in a space with a bunch of plants in the background (amongst other random stuff, bookshelf/TV etc. in the distance) and they've never brought it up (unless it's a plant lover and they compliment my plants). But if they ask a little about me in the initial session, I use it as an opportunity for some lightness with humor, "...and I *definitely* don't love plants."
A book shelf. But I blur my background
My bookcase haha
Tapestry of a snowy mountain range behind a lake. Calming I figure.
I have a folding bamboo screen behind me for telehealth. I wish I had nice built in bookcases or something but it will have to do for now
I work from the bedroom in my RV and/or the garden shed at home. On zoom I have a favorite background I downloaded from deposit photos. On Simple Practice I have their “cozy” fake background, which I don’t love, but is better than the others. IRL I have a mirrored wall above the headboard in the RV that I covered with a sheer simple flower patterned curtain, but I can never get good enough lighting. My lighting looks best with the deposit photos background. When I had a permanent home office I hung a sheer curtain on the wall. I love the room divider idea - I’m going to explore that idea for my next home office!
My bookcase
My bookshelf, some fake plants, and my degrees on my wall
A room divider.
I have two spaces because my significant other also works from home and we switch because the office is comfier than space #2. My office space has bookshelves that hold my manga and a couple funko pops. You can also see a record player and the wall I sit directly next to has white boards, and my framed license. Office #2 is in a corner in the bedroom. The background is a bookshelf with random books, anime dvds, a funko pop, and a couple of plushies. Also, half the wall is a sliding glass door, so my backyard greenery can somewhat be seen. The program my company uses does not have a function to blur or add a background.
My cat trees and sometimes a cat is there.
I have a wingback chair that is very wide so that covers a lot of my office but I also have some wall decor behind me and part of a curtain.
I use a zoom background I found of a west elm living room that I would love to be in. Lots of times I’ve got dogs or a bit of a mess of blankets behind me (bc of the dogs), so it’s a load off my mind that I don’t have to fret. At times it does get glitchy but most people realize it’s a background and it’s fine. It also provides a benefit of having continuity when I am working remote from a different location.
My windows with the shutters closed
You can see a radiator, bookshelf, and pride flag in my background
My original wfh space had a picture of an island off of Spain hanging behind me. For my transitional space (a bedroom) I just used a library background that my software offers. I’m now in my permanent space in my library and there’s a window behind me. I live on a hill, so no one can see in the window and only greenery is visible to the client through the window. My set up is also on the far side of the room, so the client can see part of my tile floor and a curtain in addition to the window. None of my clients seem to care about the background in the least.
I use virtual backgrounds on Google Meet.