Our Best Tips To Ace Remote Work

Working remotely can be challenging: suddenly, your routine changed completely and you’re trying to figure out how to stay productive and focused.

Exaud is well familiar with this reality: besides having full time remote workers, we have a company policy that allows team members to work from home whenever they need. 

That said, given the current situation and that most of the readers are probably in the same situation as us, we’d like to share some of our tips to stay on top of their ‘work from home game’: 

Set Your Office Space At Home

Where you work matters, so try to separate space as much as possible – avoid working from your bedroom and other resting areas. You’ll be able to ’shut down’ your work mode and leave your ’temporary’ office at the end of the day, even if that means switching from your dining table to the sofa. 

It’s also important to make your office space a ‘distraction free zone’. Leave your phone in your bedroom so you don’t feel like reaching out every time you get a text or randomly checking newsfeeds. This rule can also be applied to snacks and drinks, which will make you take breaks instead of just sitting at your desk, working without any pauses. It’s very easy to get distracted at home, so make sure you avoid all distractions while getting your work tasks done!

Keep Up With The Schedule and Set Up A Daily Routine

Plan your day, have breaks and make the most of your time – in other words, establish your ‘working from home’ to keep everything on track!

A study conducted in 2019 shows that remote employees tend to work more than the standard 40 hours per week, which is more than 43% than on-site workers. In order to prevent that, planning your home schedule and use your time wisely is an important part of a work from home routine in order to stay productive and keep the blues away. 

Use your commute hours to spend time with your family, exercise or work on personal projects. 

Having a routine also means don’t work with your pyjamas on and say no to the couch (your back will thank you later!)

Working From Home Is Not The Same As Vacations

This topic is particularly difficult for the ones who are staying at home with their families and children. Although it feels much more comfortable to be around with the ones you love, it’s important to set boundaries. Calmly explain that you must be focused during your work hours, with minimal distractions and just like every other day, once you’re done with it, you’ll be able to enjoy some family time properly. 

Communication Is Key (More Than Ever)

Remote work takes away the privilege of having your manager and co-workers a few desks or rooms away from you. Working remotely equals over-communication – be transparent, give a little more information than what you find necessary to make sure nothing goes missing and communicate with good intent. 

It’s important to remember that working from home puts an end to the ‘water cooler talk’, but you can still do it remotely. Reserve some of your time to check on your co-workers, especially during a troubling time like this, it is important to have casual moments and be thoughtful towards everyone.

Get The Right Tools

Take advantage of handy tools such as Slack, JIRA, Trello and Hangouts more than ever. Organisation doesn’t have to be put on the line because you’re working from home. Have your weekly meetings, daily stand up or any other necessary sync up, as you would in the office. 

Technology makes everything much easier and while things aren’t back to normal yet, we’re happy to have it on our side!

Stay safe and productive!

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