Disastrous Teams meeting - is it as bad as I think?

Never apologise, style it out and make a joke about it

But you were out of bed and dressed!

I did a speed awareness course whilst sitting on the sofa lockdown era. I was dressed and personal laptop was on a table.

I don't think the OP was saying the meeting was on Sunday, I think she might have been procasinating from the first week on the job.

Ypu are mortified but I suspect you have endeared yourself to all your work colleagues. It very much depends how pompous your job is. Sales and Marketing team, great. High Court judge, not so much.

I’d have loved this. Teams meetings are so boring! You probably gave them a good giggle. Think no more about it

People love dogs on Teams calls! I think it all sounded hilarious! As for your husband singing, unfortunate, but not a reflection on you! Maybe next time, put the dog AND husband in another room 😂

But surely it depends on the situation? Why is the fact people complain about something always referred to as “boring” etc. Now as a one off sometimes these things happen. But imagine that news interview was talking about an awful mass shooting at a school. Or a horrible accident that killed lots of children. While everyone can think that’s quite funny in the long run, it would be weird for everyone watching to start laughing and to think how hilarious it was that a very serious report has been interrupted.

I have had to have multiple video calls with specialist doctors in the past few years. About very serious health issues. Would I have found it hilarious that a dog was jumping all over them or there was a spouse singing rule Britannia while she was telling me I’d never be able to have children? No not really.

If I was on a work call where we were all being told about future redundancies and the person telling us had kids shouting and climbing all over them I wouldn’t find it funny.

If I was on a boring standard work call and these things happened, sure, I wouldn’t really care. But because it’s not hilarious in all situations doesn’t make people boring to complain.

Hmmm… why are you sat on the sofa at work? Very unprofessional. Dog and family shouldn’t be in your workspace to start with.

No problems whatsoever with the world thanks. If work is the only reason you leave the house you need to get a life.

The dog would have been a semi-regular thing at my work and got a bit of laughter but no comment. The singing husband would have been a new one but hilarious! I'm not in a client facing role so most teams calls are pretty low stakes.

I’d be laughing my head off!

It's time. Get out of your PJs and face the world.

Nothing will ever be as bad as that gentleman on an important news video call where his kids stroll in and then his wife is on her hands and knees pulling the kid out 😆. We've all been there. I'm sure someone will have something say about it, but then again, that person is usually so boring that they have nothing better to do in life but pick faults and moan! I think I'd have found it very amusing.

I love seeing people's dogs on Team meetings, but you shouldn't have been disturbed by an out of control husband or dog. You need to find a quiet place to work where you can focus & close the door. Not your sitting room sofa!

I wonder if we work in the same place as I was also aware of an incident like this in mine - unless it’s a not a once in a lifetime occurrence 🙈

I've worked from home for about 13 years and for me it's really important that I'm at a chair and a table in my home office (which also doubles up as dining room/gaming/laundry etc but not while I'm working). This is also much better for your back.

WFH is convenient for family life but the only time there was any risk of the situation you describe was during Covid lockdowns. Before that they'd be in school, after school club, or with a family member. Now they're older teens so it's not an issue.

What are the expectations at your work for your home office set up? For teams meetings or zooms, I'd defo not be on the sofa. I've only ever been on my laptop on the sofa if I've been unwell. Maybe you've got a more relaxed organisation.

The crash in demand for office blocks indicates that employers have little intention of spending money in providing workplaces again

Haha I'd have found great amusement in this 😄 my 5 month old kitten made his Teams debut last week, scaled my chair, got to face height and screamed in my face while my mic was on. It was only 3 of us and they saw the funny side thankfully

My cat threw up on the dog once when I was on a teams call. He was on the sofa and she was sat on the back of it. Bless him, he never saw it coming 😂

Not the end of the world and i personally would find it funny as a one off, plus this is one way to break the ice withnew colleagues/ team... I suggest foldable desk of you only use laptop and dont have much space in the house and a chair. If you wfh regularly, you'll need this as sofa working on a daily basis doesnt do you any favours to your back and posture and will end up with back pains.
Invest in a good chair and a desk you can put away if needed.
Always announce household members when you're in a meeting so they keep the volume down. Always close the door when in a meeting so dog doesnt bother you unless you want to introduce him to the team.
I'm expecting the managers will watch out for the way you present yourself in future meetings :).
Good luck with the new job!

OP please come back and let us know how it worked out. I think that's understandable but a learning experience. It really depends who your boss is. I had one boss who would have freaked out if that happened. My current boss would understand.

No ta, I've been happily WFH for 6 years now and no intention of ever sitting in an office again.

I’d a just like to also note the op didn’t say she worked from home. Maybe it was her day off and she was having a meeting. Don’t be so uptight life isn’t that serious.

I’d find it funny. Sounds like there’s never a dull moment. My husband would do this but would more than likely belt out some Eminem song 🤦‍♀️.

surely they’ll find the funny side. I would.