HOW TO NAIL YOUR FIRST REMOTE JOB
A few years ago, remote work wasn’t an option for most people. Most people enjoyed leaving their homes in the morning to the office and getting back in the evening, sure the internet was prevalent and smartphones were in use.
No one ever imagined that there would be a pandemic, which started in March 2020, making more people work from home, organizations and individuals have to transition from working in an office to working at home. This wasn’t a simple task, but it had to be done.
What is a remote job?
The answer to this question is quite simple; a remote job is a job that is done outside of the office setting. It’s quite different from the office lifestyle where you see your colleagues one on one every day, walk into the office cafeteria or have meetings in a conference room.
Remote work is everywhere, and it’s one of the most sought jobs by most people.
If you’re new to working remotely, this could help you nail your first remote job.
- Choose a dedicated workplace; Why do you love working from home? The comfort yeah.
You could sit on your bed, your couch, lay on the floor, etc. To do your work. But, do you know all these could make you less productive and focused? It’s easy for you to fall asleep while coop in your bed or couch. To avoid this, look for a small space in the house and dedicate that place to work. Talk to anyone you’re staying with so they respect your workplace and don’t distract you during work hours. A dedicated workplace will enable you to keep yourself in order.
Note; your home office should have a pleasant background you won’t mind people seeing during a video call. - Communicate; communication is one problem of most remote workers. Learn how to communicate with your employer to know what’s expected from you and also with your colleagues to keep track of work progress. Don’t shut yourself out just because you’re not in an office where people can see you/where you can see people. Ask questions when you are not clear about something, write the answers to questions so you could go back to it. When you need it, also ask your employer and teammate, the mode of communication they prefer. Network, try to meet new people not just on your team but on other teams. This might be challenging, but you’ve got to do it.
- Have a clear and focused goal; you need to know the reason you took on a remote job. Is it to pay off my debts, financial freedom, reduce the stress of going out, etc. Set SMART goals? SMART stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goals.
- Have “All the things”; get all the contacts, password, login, name, and phone numbers of people you report to or need to connect with. Have all the things in hand. You could create a folder or print them out. Have the contacts of people in the I.T in case you’ve got a problem so as not to hinder your work performance.
- Learn how to manage emotions; you need to learn how to manage your emotion. Be professional in your work, try to keep your emotions from affecting your work. For example, when you get irritated by something and get a call from a client, you won’t want to transfer aggression and lose the client.
- Schedule/maintain regular work hours; plan out what you will work on ahead. The beauty of remote jobs is that you can be flexible in setting your work hours. Set a schedule and stick to it so your work won’t be bleeding into evening hours when you’ve got something to do. The importance of setting a schedule is not to leave any work undone and also don’t miss out on any appointment. Besides planning, you could use a planner to keep track of deadlines, meetings, appointments, etc. Also, do schedule inbreaks.
- Invest in quality technologies/ergonomics; working remotely might require a minor investment to make your work effective. A poor internet could slow down your work and also get you frustrated. Just imagine being on a conference call over a face time app and you lose your connection? Or you miss important information because of a poor connection. This also implies other gadgets like laptops, headsets, etc.
- Listen to music; music is one important tool that helps when working. You could use any music app to stream songs you would love to listen to.
- Exercise and stretch regularly.
- Know your employer’s remote work policies.
With all the points listed above, I’m sure you are ready to kick start that job. So let’s nail that job.