20 Amazing Tips For Working Remotely

Technology has made it possible for people to connect anytime, anywhere, and with anyone around the world virtually from almost any device. Remote working is still an unfamiliar term for many people. Although due to the Covid Pandemic, the remote working culture has gained tremendous popularity and has been adopted by millions of people worldwide. 

Working remotely can be uniquely challenging, especially if you are new to it. Whether you started working remotely due to the coronavirus or managed to find a remote work job, you will need to change your habits and schedules to master work-from-home completely. Ensure that you are well guided with all the necessary information and tips for working remotely that could ease your work. 

With that said, here is a list of essential tips for working remotely that you can use to master remote work culture and perform tasks more effectively.   

Best Tips For Working Remotely

Here are some of the best tips that you can follow while working remotely that will definitely improve your remote working experience. 

1. Frequent Recognition and Rewards

Recognition is one of the most important factors when it comes to employee engagement. A survey conducted by Gallup found that more than 21% of remote workers experience loneliness while working remotely, making it a huge concern for companies and employees as well. Sending Recognition to other co-workers and staff members can help foster bonds and create a sense of community with colleagues. Recognitions are excellent to boost employee morale, especially during the time of transition. More than 82% of the remorse workers “strongly” agree to increase their recognition. Hence, introducing/increasing the frequency of employee recognition is one of the most helpful tips for working remotely.  

2. Setting Expectations

Setting up expectations can be a very useful tip for working remotely. Before starting off your journey of working remotely, make sure that you set clear expectations with your leaders and colleagues. These can include questions like what is the protocol for vacations, sick leaves and other absences? What are the tools and devices required to complete your work effectively? What should you use to communicate with your co-workers? 

Working through all these things right at the beginning can be really beneficial for you later and reduce the burden of confusion. Thus, this is one of those tips for working remotely that must be implemented as soon as possible.  

3. Sharing Feedbacks

Sharing feedback can help in overcoming the feeling of isolation and remoteness, especially while working remotely. Doing this frequently can improve communication and bonding. It is very crucial to share your opinion and let your managers take decisions over it. A strong connection with the company is what a remote employee requires more than anyone. You should feel empowered to share your concerns, thoughts and ideas with your leaders about your remote work experience. 

4. Improving Your Workspace

Your “virtual workspace” should be fully equipped with all the necessities and requirements needed to perform at your best. The environment around your workspace, the accessories and even your sitting position play a huge role in influencing your productivity. Upgrading your internet is one of the topmost tips for working remotely. This has tremendously improved the working style of many remote workers. Investing in a new desk, computer, chair, or pair of headphones can also result in great improvement. 

5. Setting Boundaries With Your Families

One of the most critical and hardest to follow tips for working remotely is setting up boundaries with your family during working hours. Try to keep your working space away from family gathering spaces like the dining hall or the living room. 

If you live along with any other remote working member or children learning online, you may need to clear out or negotiate the meeting timings, quiet times and also any shared equipment like a chair or desk. If you choose to take care of the household work while working remotely, you may suffer your productivity. Scheduling out the time for work and family time is the best solution for all the working uninterruptedly.  

6. Healthy Eating Habits

Yes, you’ve heard it correctly! It may sound insignificant, but it is one of the most important tips for working remotely. Snacking and eating fast food to save time may not be the most useful decision. Even though you may save some time, but this may cost your health. Temptations and desires to eat delicacies like potato chips, doughnuts, pizzas, pastries and sugary drinks must either be ignored or replaced by some healthy alternatives. However, it is very essential to eat freshly cooked healthy food rich with nutrients that will keep you energetic and clean for many hours. 

7. Always Be Properly Dressed 

Dressing properly is one of the keen factors that influence your working style. Well, now, this doesn’t mean wearing a blazer and tie every day. However, you should be dressed professionally, which will definitely make you feel more professional. Working in those pyjamas and boxers should now be replaced with your formal attire. That mindset will improve your work style and your work pattern, thus resulting in great outputs. 

8. Scheduling Breaks

Working right from the very moment you open your eyes straight to the time you fall asleep without any breaks may be the routine most remote workers follow. This is very unhealthy and may also result in weight loss, cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and even cancer. Therefore, it is very essential to take regular breaks in between working hours. 

Take your eyes off your computer screen for at least 15 to 30 minutes as a break from work and do some other pleasing activity like spending time with your family or cooking a good meal. This will not only freshen your mood but also increase productivity. Also, make sure that you track every break that you take throughout your day. 

9. Standing While Working

One of the key tips for working remotely is standing every now and then. Sitting in the same place for hours can result in some serious physical unwellness. A standing desk can also be a great solution to health problems, or else standing from time to time is always the option to maintain your overall health. Practice standing for an hour a day while working and then increase it by a few minutes every day. 

10. Go Outside Your Home

Working remotely doesn’t mean that you are trapped inside your house. You should go out for a walk or jog while maintaining all the precautions. This will provide your body with some movement and much-needed blood circulation. Exercising in fresh air and sunlight will help to keep your mind in place and your body active. Going out can also be visiting libraries, cafes and co-working spaces (if allowed) to pause the sameness of being at home. 

One should not disconnect themselves from physical activities while working remotely.  Leaving your house and getting the fresh air and natural light play a major role in your work-from-home environment and is one of the most useful tips for working remotely. 

11. Maintaining Regular Hours

No doubt that everyone makes a schedule for themselves, but only a few actually follow it. Scheduling and planning out when the proper working hours helps many remote workers to maintain the work-life balance. The flexibility that comes along with remote working can sometimes be curtailed. You may have to work during non-working hours to fit in with someone else’s time zone. 

Automatic time-tracking apps are very beneficial and can help you stay disciplined with your schedule. These apps help you to figure out the period where your productivity level was at peak versus the time when you were most distracted. These can help you save your productive hours to do the difficult tasks. 

12. Communicate With Your Company For Any Requirements

If your company supports your work-from-home setup, feel free to ask them for any equipment or other necessities that would be required by you to work perfectly. Asking for tools that help you to complete your task comfortably should be done as early as possible. These items might include things like a chair, desk, monitor, printer, keyboard, software subscription and other important items. Many companies also set a budget for home office equipment. Therefore, asking for tools and necessities at the time of need is one of the most beneficial tips for working remotely.

13. Keep A Separate Mobile Number

Maintaining a separate mobile number specifically dedicated to official work is one of the most underrated tips for working remotely. An individual phone number can be anything from a landline phone to VoIP services such as Skype or Google Voice. Anything that eases your communication with your colleagues and clients can be used as a means of communication. This is also one of the best tips for working remotely that helps in managing the work-life balance. 

14. Socializing With Colleagues

The flexibility that comes with the remote work culture is also accompanied by loneliness, isolation and disconnect, especially for outgoing people. There are many team messaging apps available online that can be used to talk about organizational meetups, common interests. 

The level of your interaction may depend on when and how it makes you feel connected and included. You must also be good at nurturing relationships if your company doesn’t have a strong remote culture. Social interactions also help you decide if you can ever rely on them. 

15. Speak Up In Company/Client Meetings

Online meetings and conferences are surely the eternal companions of every remote worker, but attending optional meetings is also a good idea to show your presence. Make sure to speak up when necessary during the meeting so that you aren’t neglected. Simple “Thank you, everyone” is also fine to make your presence known. This also shows that you actively participate in company discussions and are an effective remote worker. 

The fewer facetime/video conferences you have with people, the more likely you are to increase distress and short tempers. Therefore you must always stay positive to the time where it’s enough, or else you may sound like a jerk. These pint-sized things also matter a lot while working remotely, making it one of the most important tips for working remotely. 

16. Take Rest When Sick

The comfort of home is all that you need, but that doesn’t mean you’ll be working from home when you are sick. If sick days are a part of your compensation package then you should definitely take time off that is required for your wellbeing. Not applying for leaves in such cases is like throwing away your own money. 

If you are a freelancer or someone without any paid sick leave, then powering through illness and continuing work might seem the only option. Perhaps powering through illness won’t make you powerful instead, it’s a very bad idea. 

17. Overcommunication

Communication is the backbone of remote working. Working remotely requires every worker to communicate more than usual. This not at all means that you’ll need to write a 500 word long paragraph to explain what you desire to communicate every single time. You can talk about your plans on finishing projects, important tasks or your schedules. It’s not necessary that you always talk about work; you can also have a light conversation or crack some casual jokes to know your colleagues more personally. 

18. Don’t Be Too Hard On Yourself

It’s true that you need to be extremely focused to work from a place like home. Discipline is the key to becoming a successful remote worker. Sometimes, you may get drifted and find yourself doing something else. Don’t rebuke yourself too harshly. Rather, you can discuss this with your colleagues and ask them if they face the same thing. If yes, then you can lose yourself up a little and then get back to work. Although do not forget that you need to balance productivity with self-care. 

19. Know-How And When To Use A VPN

Virtual Private Networks (VPN) should always be used whenever you connect yourself to an unknown network source. The best examples of unknown networks are the free Wi-Fi at airports, cafes, libraries, hotels, co-working spaces and so on. Many companies also provide their own VPN service to their remote employees to access some websites or servers containing sensitive data that can not be accessed from any other network. In such cases, workers have to use a full-time VPN throughout their working hours no matter where they are working from. 

However, your company can track all your activities through the VPN; therefore, disconnect it as soon as the work is done. Knowledge of how and when to use a VPN is one of the most important tips for working remotely. 

20. Conclude Your Day With A Routine

Quite similar to the morning schedule, try to end your day with a nice and cheering routine. It can be anything from reading 10 pages of a book, taking your dog on an evening walk to training your muscles, listening to your favorite podcast, or learning a new software skill. After shutting down your computer, do anything that pleases you. Perhaps whatever you choose, make sure that you do it consistently as a final concluding act of your working hours. This is a very beneficial tip for working remotely as it will help you deal with all the work stress at the end of the day.

Wrapping It Up

Being new to remote work may seem very different from the traditional work culture. You can figure out what works the best for you. Or else, we’ve also provided you with some of the best tips for working remotely that you can use to ease your process of adaptation to remote working style or help you to master your remote work culture. 

We hope the tips mentioned in this article helped you in managing your remote work and life. In the end, it’s up to you what you want to try for yourself. All the best for your remote work, and don’t forget to give a try to our best tips for working remotely.

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