EDITOR'S NOTE
Christina Zdanowicz is a leader at CNN Digital and manages the evening shift for the Social Discovery Team, the network's hub for social media newsgathering. She graduated from Poynter’s Leadership Academy for Women in Media in 2018. And now, thanks to the pandemic’s silver linings, she’s making her voice heard.

Christina’s column helps us think more critically about why women speak up — and what we can do to encourage all people to contribute their ideas moving forward.

— Mel Grau, editor, The Cohort

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I’m feeling more empowered at work and it’s happening during a pandemic
By Christina Zdanowicz

In the midst of covering the coronavirus pandemic and working from home, I’ve found myself in a surprising situation: I’m more confident in my job than I was before this all started.

Don’t get me wrong, I have loads of anxiety about the coronavirus just like anyone else. In my role as senior producer for social discovery at CNN, I’ve been interviewing dozens of people who lost family members to the disease. Hundreds of thousands of people are dying and I wish none of this happened.

During this difficult time, though, working remotely has enabled me to embrace a new level of assertiveness in the workplace. I started speaking up in large meetings within the first couple of weeks. On a conference call with hundreds of people, I asked the president of CNN a question. As an introvert, I never would have done that in person.

I am someone who wants to put myself out there, though. I do plenty of public speaking, from teaching guest lectures at universities to hosting workshops for teen journalists. But when you put me in a big, group meeting, my introverted self wants other people to do the talking. I hate being the center of attention, so when people single me out, I turn bright red and nerves rise in my chest. I like to mull a thought before I share it aloud. The little girl who never raised her hand in class grew up to be the woman who hesitates speaking up in big meetings.

Yet there’s something about the power dynamic of video conference calls that’s given me a larger voice while working remotely. We’re all equal on the screen. Each face occupies the same amount of space. No one is any more powerful when we’re all rectangles on the screen, so it feels like I’m not drawing as much attention to myself. The power dynamic has shifted.

I know that not everyone is having the same burst of empowerment. The video conferences can mimic the feelings I’ve had at in-person meetings where men tend to dominate the conversation and women tend to speak less. Some women in journalism are being drowned out in video calls, finding it harder to jump in during meetings because you can’t see faces well and read the room, as The New York Times reported. And plenty of my friends and colleagues are reporting “Zoom fatigue” that comes from staring at a screen.

For me, though, the distance has been empowering.

I didn’t fully understand why that was the case until I talked with mentor and all-around leadership guru Jill Geisler, who is the Bill Plante Chair in Leadership and Media Integrity at Loyola University Chicago. Geisler helped me see that the pandemic has forced me to become a more independent worker — someone who trusts and then follows my gut instincts.

“There's a lot more autonomy going on” during this work-from-home moment, Geisler told me. “You don't have somebody sitting right next to you all the time to say, ‘Hey, does this make sense and should I do this?’ You do it.”

Throw in a ratcheted-up sense of purpose — I’m reporting on the COVID-19 pandemic and consider that work to be a public service — and you have a recipe for speaking up.

The big question I have right now is where does this leave me? I look forward to going back to the newsroom and I miss my colleagues. But I have this lingering uncertainty of whether I can continue being assertive like I have been remotely.

I would hope that I could bring this sense of autonomy and purpose to the next in-person gathering. When I feel quiet, I’ll think back to this emboldened Christina who asked a question in front of hundreds of people and moved the conversation forward. I will remind myself, “Yeah, you’ve got this. Your thoughts are important.”

I’ll also ask you all to think about what great ideas likely are not being shared in the meetings you’re hosting. Everyone keeps saying now is the time to redefine how we work and make changes to newsrooms. Let's start with these oft-intimidating meetings and take the lessons we learned while communicating in quarantine to make these spaces more inclusive.

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OPEN SOURCE
Christina’s sources of energy and inspiration. You can follow her at @stinaz27.

What’s your best Instagram follow?
My Instagram feed is half smush-faced cats, half cooking accounts. I started following @InaGarten after her massive cosmopolitan cocktail video and I’ve stayed for her practical meals you can make with things in your house. @bonappetitmag has also been on fire with its Instagram stories with chefs. As for the cats, there’s something about looking at grumpy, exotic shorthair cats that brings me joy. Canada’s @morris_the_persian_cat and Tokyo’s @jil.715 are two of my favorites.

Who has been your best mentor and why?
My former colleague Jan Winburn started off as someone I would collaborate with on projects and she wound up becoming a close personal friend. I aspire to be a brilliant editor like Jan someday. She’s taught me to listen, look at the details and really, to use empathy to tell better stories. Nowadays we talk about life more than storytelling, which is great.

What’s your go-to work snack?
Dry cereal in a coffee cup. Cheerios, Rice Krispies or Chex.

What’s helping you be efficient lately?
In between the craziness of work and meetings, I break outside and walk around my neighborhood. Being in nature resets me and helps me get back to focusing on work.

What have you consumed lately that actually consumed you?
Anything from The Atlantic. Their coronavirus coverage has been brilliant.

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FREE MENTORING
Do you need help speaking up in this virtual world? Boost your confidence, face imposter syndrome and pitch your ideas with free mentoring through Digital Women Leaders. More than 120 women and female-identifying people who work in news volunteer as mentors on the platform, including:

Sushil Cheema, editor at The Penny Hoarder/Taylor Media

Angela Pacienza, managing editor, experience at The Globe and Mail

Kim Bui, director of audience innovation at The Arizona Republic

Find Your Mentor- [link removed]

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COHORT IN CONVERSATION
Unlike Christina, I’ve felt uncomfortable unmuting myself in large virtual meetings. I still try to be visible, though. Chat functionality is my savior. I use it for private follow-ups based on the group conversation, random acts of kind comments to coworkers, a well-placed joke or a quick link for communal reference. I save my pitches for smaller meetings when I know I have people’s attention on a specific topic.

How are you making sure your ideas are heard as we continue working remotely? Email me your experiences or tips at [email protected].

While you’re here, I encourage you to check out these other resources to help you face the multiple realities of the pandemic:
5 platforms to help you find your next journalism job
[link removed]
, by previous Cohort columnist Mandy Hofmockel.
5 tips for launching a journalism career in the middle of a pandemic
[link removed]
from The New York Times’ director of newsroom fellowships and internships, Theodore Kim. Related, Amanda Zamora and Emily Ramshaw’s media start-up The 19th
[link removed]
is still launching
[link removed]
this summer.

An ongoing list of COVID-19 mental health resources
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for journalists from the Carter Center. Life is getting harder — not easier — for many of us. Remember there is support available.

With encouragement,

Mel

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