Many people have recently been thrust into working from home. The pandemic seemed to be winding down, but it has reared its ugly head again, and now people are back home and working remotely.
This time around this change may even be for good. Companies are realizing the value of keeping their employees working remotely so it could be a change that sticks around. One problem with this is that some people are not prepared for working remotely long term and aren’t set up for it.
In this article, we will go over how to work remotely and still be productive.
1 – Set up a home office
The beating heart of your remote work is the home office. It needs to be set up for success so you can get the work done on time and productively. A poorly set up home office is going to be inefficient and cause your work to be harder and take longer.
It should have all of the equipment that you would normally have at a work office. The advantage, however, is that you can have everything at your fingertips. For instance, you’ll need an all-in-one inkjet printer. The bonus is that it doesn’t have to be located across an office. You can have it sitting right on your desk.
Your desk should be big enough to handle your computer and everything else you need to get the work done so you aren’t running the risk of being disorganized.
2 – Have a communications system
You may be far from the office but you need to be accessible as if you were in a cubicle a few feet away. Stay up to date and always on call by having a good way of communicating. Make sure that you are on the right software and that it is reliable.
Aside from being accessible, you should also be proactive. This means that you should set aside time to reach out to communicate. This is the time to ask questions, affirm that you’re on the same page, and also remind everybody that you exist and are working towards the goal.
3 – Know your work habits
A big benefit to working remotely is that you aren’t required to do everything on the same schedule as everybody else. If your work habits are different but still allow you to be productive then you can work within that framework.
For instance, maybe you work best when you have music playing. This is possible because you are not in an office environment. Or, you like to take some time to do some light yoga during the day to refocus and keep the blood flowing.
Figure out your work style and have a routine that is going to work best for your needs.
4 – Don’t overwork
Work time can easily spill over to home time if you aren’t careful. Make sure to set hard limits on where and when you work. This will keep you from burning out which would be very unproductive.