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3 ways to instantly look smarter on video calls
Have you ever joined a Zoom call and thought, “Why do I look like a vampire who doesn’t know where the camera is?” Since it’s the start of a new week, here are easy tricks to make you look brighter, smarter and significantly less like you’re broadcasting from a cave.
🎥 Fix your camera placement
The fastest way to look smarter is simple: Stop looking down at your screen.
- Position your webcam at eye level, even if that means stacking some books under your laptop.
- Sit 18 to 24 inches from your camera. Too close = awkward giant face. Too far = tiny distant speck.
⭐️ Bonus move: Drag whoever’s talking to the top-center of your screen, right under your webcam. This way, you’re naturally looking at the speaker and into the camera. No more looking down, off to the side or like you’re secretly reading something else.
Turns out the fastest fix is good old eye contact. Not like “date night,” but like “I’m kinda interested.”
💡 Master your lighting
Good lighting is an instant upgrade.
- Face a natural light source like a window if possible.
- No window? Place a soft lamp behind your monitor shining toward you, not overhead. Overhead lighting makes you look like you’re telling ghost stories. 👻 Save the oOoOoOoO for the Halloween campfire.
- Avoid bright lights directly behind you, they turn you into a mysterious silhouette.
⭐️ Bonus move: In Zoom, turn on Touch up my appearance under Settings > Video for a little automatic soft-focus magic. Google Meet has “Apply visual effects” > “Slight” or “Studio Lighting” options.
If you do need the right light to look fabulous, here’s a great one ($25).
🏡 Clean up that background
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Clear the room
📦 Seriously, these gems will help you do exactly that.
- Keep your clothes wrinkle-free with a pack of garment bags (15% off).
- This two-pack of bed storage bins (19% off) is easy to roll right out.
- See all your spices, sugar and salt in these glass condiment jars (29% off).
- Loathe stale loaves? Snag a bread container ($20), so they stay fresh.
- Breeze through security with a stadium-approved backpack (10% off).
✋ Hang on: Toss those flimsy hangers. These wooden ones (19% off) are strong and look great, too.
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Your phone has a death date
Your phone is dying as you’re reading this. Many people don’t realize that, like milk, condoms or your favorite hot sauce that’s been in the fridge since 2018, your phone has an expiration date.
Here are the average lifespans for some of today’s most popular phone brands and makes:
🏊 Pool safety tip: Drowning is the top cause of death for kids ages 1 to 4. Sadly, 88% happen with an adult nearby. That’s why the Y-M-C-A launched Phones Down, Eyes Up. Take their pledge and get a free lock screen reminder, pool safety tips and a “Water Watcher” lanyard for the grown-up keeping watch.
🚔 Modern superhero: Modern Family’s Ariel Winter is now working undercover in child predator stings. Yes, that Ariel. She volunteers with SOSA, posing as teens online to catch creeps in real life. As you can imagine, Ariel describes how emotionally demanding the gig can be.
Stop Kindle fumbles: Disable your touchscreen so taps don’t register, but swipes to turn pages still work. Open a book, tap More options (three-dot icon) > Disable Touchscreen and hit OK. Want it back on? Just press the Power button to sleep and wake your Kindle.
AI is breaking brains: Some folks are so obsessed with bots, they’re losing relationships and their grip on reality. One guy in Idaho believes he gave ChatGPT consciousness just by asking the right questions (paywall link). His wife says she’s scared to argue or he might divorce her. Others think they’re talking to God and angels. It’s a computer, folks.
$300,000
The cost of the Cadillac Celestiq planned for production this year. GM is only making 25 of them. Who’d spend that kind of money on this awful-looking Cadillac? Speaking of … How do you get your Cadillac to the 2nd level of a mall? You use the Escalader.
40-foot submarine-hunting drone
The “BlueWhale” uses special sensors to spot underwater and surface threats, and can help clear mines. The cool bit? It’s fully autonomous and runs on batteries for weeks. Basically, a Roomba’s scarier cousin with serious military vibes.
Snip n’ snatched
👩⚕️ I’ve got some small tools that can do big things for your body.
- Massage away your pain with a vibrating foam roller (22% off).
- A smart tape measure (14% off) gives you accurate body specs.
- Fever? This thermometer (11% off) checks your temp in seconds.
- Tame your nose and facial hair with a trimmer (11% off) for women.
- Can’t hear? You might want an earwax removal tool (27% off).
💙 Keep your cool: Hot and cold gel packs (36% off) work way better than that old bag of frozen peas.
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Know this about LinkedIn: The best days to post are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Aim for early mornings (around 8-10 a.m.) or around lunch (12-1 p.m.) in your local time zone to capture the most engagement. Use my special link to post a job for free on LinkedIn.
Kill phantom power spiking your electric bill
Your devices might be “off,” but they’re still burning energy. Here’s a cheap fix to cut your bill.
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🧟 Walt Disney returns … kinda: For Disneyland’s 70th, Disney is unveiling an animatronic Walt Disney to “remind fans he was an actual person” and not a mouse. Some family members aren’t thrilled, calling it a robotic grandpa impostor. But Disney swears it’s what Walt would have wanted, right down to the animatronic charm. Spoiler: No cigarettes. It was reported Walt smoked three packs a day.
eBay’s new shopping friend: eBay’s new AI shopping “companion” wants to spiritually replace the friend who knew your vibe and your 3 a.m. niche obsessions. Its new generative AI guide is designed to guide you through the digital thrift store with next-generation ease. It’s slowly being rolled out to U.S. customers near the search bar.
Dumb it down: Google just dropped a rare AI tool that doesn’t hallucinate, lie or ask you to eat glue. It’s called Simplify, and it turns complex web text into plain English, right inside the Google app. It’s not a summary, it’s a real-time dumb-down filter. It’s like a CliffNotes for the information overloaded.
6 dead tech phrases you’ll never say again
From Blockbuster nights to fax machines, here’s what tech made obsolete.
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20%
That’s how much longer mice lived after a single dose of a protein called Klotho. They also aged better, with stronger muscles, denser bones and sharper brains. Human trials are still a ways off, but if it translates, we’re talking 16 extra years. Basically, it’s the closest thing to a youth potion in a syringe.
Only 1 in 4
AI projects actually deliver a return on investment. Still, companies are FOMOing cash at them like it’s a sure thing — 64% of CEOs jumped in before even knowing if the tech would help. But hey, they’re playing the long game. Most don’t expect results for at least two years. Gotta spend it to (maybe) earn it.
3 scams that drain your bank account
Think you’d never fall for one? These are the exact tricks catching people every day.
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