How should you work effectively as a remote employee?

Remote work can feel like a dream come true.

You can work from home or spend the life of a digital nomad, feel comfortable in your casual PJs and t-shirt all day.

You get to ditch the commute and enjoy working from your home office or a cozy cafe.

It feels fantastic, isn’t it?

Remote work can be a way of freedom.

You just have to find your way.

Here are some tips for balancing work-life when working remotely.

1- Create a Workspace:

Make a space that looks like a real office that will give you a feel of working in an office atmosphere.

Get a high-quality office chair so that you can be comfortable while working for hours.

Personalize your desk with family photos or fun posters.

Be sure to make your office in a place where you can close the door in case of potential distractions.

Make sure you organize your desk and keep things in place, so they are easy to find when required.

2- Establish a routine:

Having a proper routine is important.

Remember to take regular breaks and quit in time as you would in the office.

Set aside certain times of the day for work, it will keep you focused.

Find out the time of the day when you are most productive.

For example, early mornings are great for writing when you are clear of thoughts.

Give yourself 40 to 60 minutes of pure work followed by a few minutes of break to get back and focus on work again.

3- Snooze notifications:

Popup notifications can be distracting from coworkers, emails or other apps can sometimes be distracting, also it’s a challenge keeping away from them.

You can be pulled into an unrelated conversation and leave your work half done.

Instead of getting interrupted with notifications, snooze them and check periodically.

Some remote teams have non-parallel communication and understand the time-zone difference, while there are others who don’t.

4- Accountability:

When you work remotely, it’s easy to fall for a 24/7 work module, assuming that your coworkers or your boss thinks you are not doing anything.

You are accountable for your work.

It’s a common worry, and it’s totally in your head.

As long as you are meeting deadlines, solving problems, and being proactive at the workplace, you can keep your concern aside.

Your coworkers should have confidence in you and your accountability.

5- Communication with team-mates:

Communicate with your coworkers and schedule meetings to keep everyone on the same page.

Inform your work schedule and work hours.

Remote working is all about designing your lifestyle on your terms, which leads to empowerment.

6- Motivation and goals:

You will need to be self-directed and self-motivated.

If you love working remotely, you may lose this privilege if you don’t perform well.

You will need strategies for beating up procrastination and enhance productivity.

*7- A dependable and high-quality telecom system is another key element in successful remote working. *

It makes sense economically to use a VoIP, or internet business phone system, to connect a team of remote workers.

8- Supervise yourself, don’t wait on others to tell you what to do - take initiative.

9- Be trustworthy when not under direct supervision by your boss.

The 4 key pillars of high remote performance:

Culture
Goals
Processes
Talents

Thanks for reading.

If you’re a regular reader, thank you, you’re a big part of the reason I’ve been able to share my life/career experiences with you.

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