In our last article we have reviewed the teleworking challenges that most organizations are currently facing. One of the key revelations is that teleworking can be challenging for both business leaders and their employees. Today we will be reviewing effective strategies on how employees can survive teleworking.
Life of a Remote Worker
Working remotely can be very rewarding if done correctly. Of course, one needs to be careful in avoiding the common pitfalls. For starters, working remotely can be really time and cost effective – imagine all the savings in daily commute times and bus trips (or gasoline!) to and from the office.
Remote workers, also known as digital nomads, have been secretly keeping this luxurious lifestyle to themselves for many years. The most common remote workers are those who working in technology or freelancing sectors.
Nowadays, in view of economic and social aspects, a lot of companies are moving towards teleworking, while others are following slowly. For some employees this new setup might be appealing, but for the majority, it is a totally green field that requires a degree of preparation.
Approaching Teleworking the Right Way
Despite the paradigm shift in working environments and all the challenges that we have discussed earlier, employees should be open to teleworking setups. Recent coronavirus pandemics have left organizations with no options but to actually move in that direction.
In this blog post we will share some tips on how employees can survive teleworking.
Top 4 Strategies How Employees Can Survive Teleworking:
1. Keep a Dedicated Office Space
One of the common pitfalls when working from home is not to draw physical boundaries between work space and the home environment. This could potentially lead to inability to wind down when you are finished from work.
We recommend to setup a dedicated space (ideally a room) where you perform your ‘work-from-home’ duties. This can be also helpful when you need to setup teleconference calls with your team or your clients.
When working from a coffee shop or even outdoor space, make sure that you are already familiar with the environment – you know where you can plug your charger when you need it, and where you can sit quietly when you need to do a meeting.
2. Make and Stick To a Routine
Humans are creatures of habit. Whether we admit it or not, we perform better if we create and stick to a routine.
- Morning routine – Take breakfast and a shower. Dress up. Do not stay in your pijamas! Try to maintain the usual starting time when you check in at work (i.e. switching on the laptop and say hi!)
- Lunch routine – Have lunch. It is easy to skip lunch especially if you are glued to a monitor. If necessary (and if it is not the pandemic!) get out and take outdoors lunch or in your favorite eatery. Take breaks in their entirety.
- Email routine – It is easy to get distracted with opening emails every 5 minutes. Try to check your emails consistently through predefined intervals – say once every hour or even less frequent.
- Social media routine – We love distractions, banters and small talk. The equivalent of small talk in the digital remote working world is social media. Do not avoid the temptation – check your Facebook and Instagram accounts – however do it as a routine – like 3 or 4 times a day during predefined time slots.
- Switching off routine – Contrary to what most people think, people who work remotely, actually clock more hours. So it is important to stick with your working schedule. While flexibility is tempting – and some people love splitting their working day, this can get out of hand if not planned and set in a routine.
3. Hydrate & Stretch Your Legs
With no one inviting you for a coffee in your office canteen, or for a glass of water, you will be missing on two important things – stretching your legs and hydrating yourself.
It is extremely important not to spend long hours sitting down without moving. This will hurt your lower back in the long term. Additionally, not drinking plenty of water is really harmful – but we know that already!
4. Use a Webcam During Meetings
Loneliness and lack of social interaction is one of the deterrents of remote working. This is a very common (and serious issue), however one can easily overcome it.
When it comes to day to day work, do not hesitate to ask for what you need. Remote working does not mean you are thrown into the fire by yourself. You are still working within a team.
Also, remember the small talk and banter you used to do when you worked in an office, and how much you enjoyed being the office butterfly? Well you can still use your company’s communications software (or even better, social media – check your company’s policy on non-work related communication). You need to understand that it is OK to chat and most managers do not mind, as long as the work is done. Plus, it keeps you motivated and happy.
Another effective strategy to combat isolation and lack of social interaction is to try to use webcam as much as possible. For one, you get to see your colleagues. And most importantly, it encourages you to ‘dress up’ and look good even if you are working from home.
Conclusion
Teleworking is very rewarding and we believe that in the next few years the number of remote working opportunities will continue to increase.
Download our exclusive eBook to learn how to land a successful remote working opportunity and strive as a modern job seeker.
