Our world is moving away from traditional offices as a central hub for work. This shift in focus has brought about a new kind of company, with distributed teams and workers based in different locations. Remote workers are becoming the norm for companies these days.
So how does this affect you? Theoretically, it should be good news if you’re like me and enjoy the flexibility to work from home regularly or travel to where you need to be at certain times of the year; in today’s fast-paced economy, however, choosing to go remote can come with some unique challenges — namely reduced access to tools that help us stay productive (collaboration software being one glaring example).
How Do They Operate?
Remote workers are employees that are not on site. They have chosen to work remotely, usually working from their own home or other remote location with a connection to the main company’s office. Remote workers often fill jobs where there is no need for physical presence, such as telework specialists, customer service representatives, technical support representatives, and so on.
Working from home as a remote worker is becoming more and more popular. But how do you make sure that you’re preparing for your transition? Remote working involves many different things — from finding your workspace to learning time management.
Five most important skills to adapt as a Remote worker
If you’re ready for an exciting new opportunity, the time is now! Your desk awaits you…
This post discusses five skills that will help remote workers thrive:
- Time management and organization,
- Communication Skills,
- Computer and internet security,
- Self-confidence and motivation,
- Organization skills (and a healthy dose of patience).
Time and organization skills:
One of the biggest challenges for most remote workers is learning to manage their time instead of time managing them.
Working from home can make it easy to be sidetracked with everyday distractions—from laundry to watching TV shows—that are easy to fit into the day instead of your projects! You have to learn how to avoid these distractions and set aside blocks of time for your work to be successful as a remote worker.
Communication Skills:
Never forget that communication is key! Effective remote workers are excellent communicators, both in writing and in person.
To make sure you’re communicating properly, take the time to:
Learn the common communication tools (e.g. Skype, Google Hangouts, Skype Calls, etc.)
Learn how to explain concepts and ideas in simple language so your boss gets what you’re trying to do.
Time Management:
Time management is one of the most important aspects of becoming a great remote worker!
You’ll need to be disciplined enough to block out exactly how much time per week you want to spend working on your projects and set aside that amount of time each day for working on them instead of doing everything else in life.
Computer and internet security:
Casey is a great example of just how important it is to maintain strong computer and internet security skills.
When you’re working from home, you’re at greater risk of becoming a victim of identity theft or other cybercrime crimes because you’re not in the office surrounded by colleagues!
Self-confidence and motivation:
The biggest challenge most remote workers face on the job is self-motivation, which takes time to develop. Without it, your job will be much harder. You’ll have to work hard to find ways to motivate yourself so that you can work without feeling like it’s a job.
The importance of learning the skills of remote working
As a remote worker with special skills like communication and leadership, here are the reasons why they should be taken seriously:
- They can help people negotiate a successful remote working arrangement with their employer
- They can provide other remote workers with insight and advice on how to successfully manage their workflow
- They are best placed to spot the challenging situations in transitioning from an office to a remote working arrangement and share practical tips on how to overcome these challenges (eg. effective planning and time management, communication, and networking skills).
- They can teach the art of working effectively in a remote environment (e.g. the importance of self-motivation, having a regular work schedule, and independence).
The key question is do organizations take this seriously? Yes and no. It depends. But we are expecting more and more organizations to listen to the voices of their remote workers.
Organizations that engage with remote workers
Here are the three types of organizations that are often hesitant to engage with remote workers:
1. Large organization – These large organizations hire their staff from a “pool” of hundreds of people, and thus have difficulty adapting to a new employee if he/she is working remotely. They are also worried about the “risks” involved in hiring an individual (e.g. lack of flexibility, cost).
2. Start-up organization – Start-ups tend to be more adventurous. Therefore, they are more open to hiring remote workers, and often have no problems with the challenges involved in hiring a remote worker (e.g. time management, and work allocation).
3. Small organization – Companies with a small size will face several challenges in adapting to the remote working culture, Conclusion including poor technology available at their office; lack of training resources; lack of support and information from senior management and founders; difficulty in collaborating with other people who are not physically located at the office.
The skills of remote working should be taken seriously because it not only improves productivity at work but also helps you work more efficiently. The challenges that people face when transitioning from an office to remote work should be recognized by those who have experience doing so, as they are the first ones who know what it takes to manage these kinds of things.
Conclusion
remote workers need to be proactive about their career development, especially those who are working in their first remote role. By doing so, they can become the best performers in their roles due to increased communication and networking skills, as well as better working knowledge of how to manage a successful business from the distance.
The more people who take this matter seriously and educate themselves about it now, the better it would be for both parties in the end. It is beneficial not only to you but also to your employer and your colleagues.
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Fortune Ehiwayas is a prolific writer who loves arts and science fiction, converting her experiences into captivating content.
