Working with others
Catch up with a remote teammate, no agenda
A simple exercise to get to know a remote teammate the way a shared office would have let you
Book fifteen minutes with a teammate you only ever see in meetings, with no agenda except catching up.
- 15 minutes
- You and one teammate
- Monthly
- Conversation
Why this can work
A short catch-up with no agenda puts back the in-between moments where colleagues get to know each other, the ones remote work tends to lose. Meetings survive the move online; the chat by the coffee machine doesn't.
Read moreHow to have a virtual coffee chat with a teammate
You’ll come away with a teammate who's more than a name on a meeting invite.
- Pick one teammate you only see in meetings.
Someone you work with but have never really talked to. People who joined recently are a good choice; they often have the fewest of these moments.
- Ask for fifteen minutes, and say why.
An invite with no agenda can make people wonder what's wrong. One line saying it's just to catch up takes that away.
To: a teammate you only see in meetingsI realized we mostly see each other in meetings, and I'd like to actually catch up.
Would you be up for fifteen minutes sometime this week or next? No agenda, nothing to prepare. Just a coffee-break conversation, remote edition.
Swap the highlighted parts for your thing. Works on Slack, in email, or said out loud. - Keep it light, and be curious.
Ask what they're working on, how the week is going, what they did before this job. Share your side too.
You“What's taking up most of your week right now?”Tip: Cameras optional. Some people talk more easily on audio, or out on a walk.
- Let it be enough.
No follow-up, no action items. If you enjoyed it, say you'd happily do it again, and pick someone else next month.
Good times to repeat it: once a month, with a different personwhen someone new joins the teamafter a stretch of meetings-only weeks
Making it work for you
Every workplace is different. Here’s what to think about before you start, and what might get in the way.
Things to think about
Teammates in far-off time zones often get the fewest of these conversations. Taking the early or late slot for them is a small kindness they'll notice.
What might make this harder
Say so in the invite if you like. Owning the awkwardness out loud usually dissolves it.
Questions people ask
How do I build relationships with remote coworkers?
Make time for conversations that aren't about tasks. A short, no-agenda catch-up with one person at a time, every few weeks, tends to do more than a big team event.
What do you talk about in a virtual coffee chat?
What they're working on, how their week is going, what they did before this job, anything they've mentioned outside work. Share your side too.
Is it weird to schedule a meeting with no agenda?
Not if you say why. A one-line invite saying it's just to catch up makes it clear nothing is wrong.
Why this works, and where it comes from
An office is full of conversations nobody planned. The chat while the coffee brews, the walk to a meeting room, the question over the top of a screen. None of it looks like work, and a lot of how colleagues come to know and trust each other happens there. Remote work doesn't remove relationships so much as the accidents that used to build them. Without those, teammates tend to meet each other only in task mode.
Knowing someone even a little changes how you read everything they send you. A short reply from a person you've laughed with reads as busy; the same reply from a stranger can read as annoyed. You also learn things no meeting surfaces: what they're working on, what's making their job harder, how they like to be reached. That runs both ways, and it's why you share your side too.
Chances are they miss these moments too, especially if they're newer, or the only one on their team in their time zone. Being the one who asks is a small, generous act, and people tend to remember who reached out first.
It's not the move for everything. If something is actually wrong between you and this person, raise it directly rather than hoping a friendly chat will smooth it over; a catch-up that's secretly about something else usually feels like a trap. Someone who has made clear they'd rather keep work to work deserves to have that respected; keep your conversations with them about the job.
Other simple things to consider
What to do next
More in Working with others
A few minutes that compound
Do it with Truest and it goes on your permanent record, in a Career Vault your employer doesn’t own.
See how Truest worksAlready a member? Log in- A reminder beforePut it on your calendar and Truest reminds you before it starts.
- It comes back if it slipsA missed one comes back around instead of disappearing.
- On your recordWhen it's done, it goes on your record with your priorities and progress.
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An exercise written by Truest, based on our experience. Last updated September 25, 2026. We sell a career membership; where that’s relevant above, we say so.