Tips for telling a true story over Zoom:

1. Light yourself well. Aim a light up towards a white ceiling to bounce light softly all around. Also aim a lamp facing you, to light your eyes and face. Turn off lights in the background. Close doors and curtains behind you.
2. Forget the virtual background. It eats up bandwidth and distorts your image. We want to hear your story, not see a cutesy fake background!
3. Look into the camera on your laptop or phone. This will give the audience the feeling that you are making eye contact with them. 
4. Don't look down at your screen while you tell your story.
5. Place your laptop, or phone, up on something eye-level. We don't want to look up your nose. 
6. If you want, stand up. You'll be more energetic than sitting down.
7. Make sure you are in a quiet environment. Or else use a headset with microphone. Make sure there's nothing noisy going on around you.
8. Pro tip: set a timer near you. See when you're coming close to 5 minutes, and end your story before the bell goes off.