In today's ever-changing world of work, and with the unexpected push that Covid gave to working from home, we are no longer bound by traditional office settings. This shift has opened up new opportunities for us to work from anywhere in the world, while also presenting new challenges.
When working from home was thrust upon us, hardly anyone was prepared for what that truly entailed. Whilst the occasional day working from the kitchen table can work well, as a permanent set up it´s less than ideal. Whilst there are huge bonuses to working remotely (goodbye random sweaty men on the underground), there are also unique challenges that can spring up.
But it is possible to thrive if you ensure that certain practices are in place and today we´re going to go through a list of tools that can help make your remote job the only one you´ll want.
We will cover topics such as setting up a dedicated workspace, mastering communication and collaboration tools, maintaining productivity and focus, and establishing healthy work-life boundaries. In short, you may never want to leave your house again.
Setting up a Dedicated Workspace
A dedicated workspace is essential for success in a remote work environment. I´m not suggesting you build an extension if you don´t have a room that you can use as an office, but you should carve out a place that is solely dedicated to your work. Even if you´re using a corner of your dining table, before you sit down to work, make it your own. Clear any clutter and make it a work space. A pile of laundry or dirty breakfast bowls isn´t exactly conducive to focus, so get them out of your way, or at the least, out of your line of sight.
Choose a quiet and distraction-free location in your home. This could be a spare room, a home office, or even a quiet corner of your bedroom.
Invest in a comfortable and ergonomic desk chair. I cannot stress this enough. What is comfortable for an hour is not necessarily comfortable for a day, let alone long term. A good chair will help you maintain good posture and prevent back pain and nothing is more distracting than discomfort.
Ensure that your workspace is well-lit and has adequate ventilation. Whilst I understand that you most likely won´t want industrial lighting in your home, good visibility will not only save your eyesight, but your sanity. Dark and moody may look chic, but you do actually need to be able to see and breathe. You´re not a bog person.
Use the Right Tools
In a remote work environment, communication and collaboration are crucial. Nuance is non existent and without the ability to gauge someones reaction in person, you have to be 100% sure that you´re using all of the tools at your disposal to make sure nothing is missed. There are hundreds of apps and tools available to you to make sure you stay connected, most of which you´ve probable already heard of, but if you don´t already use at least some of these then start now.
The key to remote work being as productive as the office is to ensure that everything is as accessible as if you were sat next to your colleagues. Put something in place that is dedicated just to work and use them. Avoid things like Whatsapp, SMS etc unless you have a dedicated work phone. You need to be able to turn off from work when you´re done and if your office is in your hand, that becomes a lot harder to do. In case you need them, here is a list of tools that can keep you connected. Please note that some of these are affiliate links but we wouldn´t recommend if we didn´t know they were great.
Video conferencing tools: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams
Messaging apps: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Chat
Project management tools: monday.com, Asana, Trello,
Minute-taking tools: Meetgeek
Whether you use one or all of them, by ensuring that you keep connected, you can make sure that nothing gets missed and your relationship with your colleagues is as good as if you were in the same room.
Maintaining Productivity and Focus
It can be difficult to stay productive and focused when working from home. Whether it´s a pile of washing that needs doing, or an Amazon delivery arriving, your real life can get in the way of your job and if you´re being interrupted every half hour it can be difficult (if not impossible!) to maintain focus. There are ways to help you avoid your work life and professional life from crossing over too much and for both your productivity and you general sanity, I´d suggest you implement at least one!
Set regular work hours. This will help you create a sense of structure and discipline in your day. Although your role may allow you to work the hours of your choosing, try to implement a routine. Whilst the theory of being able to work whenever you want sounds great, in reality it can make you feel as though you should always be ready to work. Set yourself a timetable of the work hours that are right for you and as far as possible, stick to them.
Take regular breaks. You´d be surprised at how regularly you do get up when you’re in the office, whether it´s for a coffee break or to talk to a colleague so try to keep as active when you´re at home. Get up and move around every 30-60 minutes to avoid getting bogged down.
Try to avoid distractions. Having Netflix on in the background might sound like a nice idea, but if you´re concentrating on American Nightmare then you´re probably going to miss a few things that are important! (if you haven´t seen it, then watch it now!) Listen to some music instead or find something you can actively ignore.
Establishing Healthy Work-Life Boundaries
It´s absolutely crucial to be able to switch off from work, and this can be much more difficult when your work is in your home. The temptation to just check an email, or send a quick message can be strong but it´s really important to remember that you need non-work time as well. Being strict with yourself about when and where you can work can help you avoid burnout and help establish a decent routine.
Here are a few tips:
Set aside a specific time each day where you can switch off from work. Set up your apps and emails with your working hours and you can ensure that you don´t receive notifications outside of that time. It can be next to impossible to not respond to a message or email once you´ve seen it come through so just remove the temptation. Unless you´re a first responder, no one´s going to die if you reply to them tomorrow.
Turn off your work phone or computer when you're not working. Close the laptop, put it away, and DO NOT open it again until you´re back at work. From experience, it can be too tempting to stay on the computer if it´s just there staring at you, so make your life easier and put it away. Out of sight, out of mind.
Make sure you remember to leave the house! With home delivery, working from home and unlimited entertainment available on demand, the temptation can be strong to never go outside again. Don´t do this. The experience of working remotely can feel isolating, so make sure you´re interacting with real people during your downtime. As above, you´re not a bog person, so don´t act like one.
Make sure you stay active. Do not underestimate how much less you´ll be moving if you no longer have to commute. Not only is this no good for you in almost every possible general health term (the makers of WallE knew what was coming), it will massively impact on your sleep patterns and ability to concentrate.
Conclusion
Remote work can be hugely satisfying and for many of us, provide the opportunity to live and work from wherever we like without risking our career, but it´s not perfect. In order to be able to successfully work remotely long term, you need to make some conscious decisions about how to set up your days. It´s not just about the location, it´s about the intention.
And if you need some further inspiration and tips on how to excel at remote working, then I can highly recommend you looking up Diana Brandl, the absolute queen of the remote EA world. She runs courses, gives speeches, writes and has her own podcast alongside working as a remote EA. If her resume doesn´t impress you, then her photos from her digital nomad life certainly will!
Comments