REMOTE WORK TIPS AND TRICKS
About a year ago, GSATi transitioned from being a mostly in-office team to an almost 90% remote team. From a few days a week in-office to come-when-you-can for most of our team, the transition has been mostly smooth sailing. But that was not without some serious preparation, teamwork, and a good crew of team members that worked hard to make sure we stayed productive and successful. Let’s dive into what it takes to keep a remote ship, or ships, afloat.
The Perks
While there are some obvious perks all around, we were curious as to just how beneficial our choices are to operate as a (mostly) remote team. Our own Director of Operations, Cindy Kubis let us know that “having a remote staff means occupying less physical space, which means lower rent payment for us – 60% less – and less cost for office upkeep (housekeeping, paper goods, electricity, heat/AC) about 85% less.”
It’s also important to acknowledge the sleep benefits! CK pointed out that “employees [may] get more sleep because they don’t have to commute. I know I do…and I don’t have to get dressed for the office (even though it’s casual, it still takes time.”
Our Senior Software Support Engineer, Arthur Goerlitz had a really awesome point we thought it was integral to share:
“ For companies that go 100% remote, the savings for rent and electricity on their part would be 100%. For those that maintain a smaller office (a home base) would see drastic reductions in their home base overhead.
“One might ask oneself, ‘isn’t it just deferring the office costs to the employee?’ My response to that would be if you ask these employees the cost of commuting to work, back and forth, vehicle depreciation lowering resale costs and costs of repairs, wouldn’t that be significantly more than the additional electric, etc one would pay by the added demand of not being able to work from home?” The solution seems obvious!
Things we recommend for getting started:
Getting started with a proper at-home setup is sometimes the hardest part, but is always the most valuable one. Having a strong, sufficient at-home setup can make or break your productivity for the workplace. Let’s go over some fundamental needs to invest in, that will lead you to the path of remote greatness.
Having a dedicated workspace creates that ambiance of “I’m here to do work, I am at work, even if I am physically at home.”
A solid internet connection: keeps your programs alive, and your connection strong during meetings and other work-related calls and tasks.
A dedicated workspace: We’ll talk about dedicated and intentional efforts later on in this article, but straight out of the gate, we want to highly emphasize the importance of having a dedicated workspace. Having this space creates that ambiance of “I’m here to do work, I am at work, even if I am physically at home.” This is also a helpful way to communicate to your housemates or space mates that when you are occupying that space, that you are dedicated to that time and should not be disturbed.
Pro-health tip: We recommended checking out this brief graphic from the Mayo Clinic on good office ergonomics.
Good headset and/or microphone: Believe it or not, these will come in handy more often than you think. Having a good headset or microphone makes it easier to participate in online meetings, as well as further create that dedicated workspace, by tuning out any unnecessary distractions.
Laptop people: An additional monitor: If you’re based out of a traditional laptop and are not a desktop owner, having an additional, larger monitor screen - or two if you can - is highly recommended. Not just from an efficiency perspective, but a health perspective as well. Staring downward at a laptop screen for extended lengths of time can cause long-term physical damage such as neck pain, eye strain and damage to vision, all things we certainly want to avoid. You should also consider investing in a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse as well, if you are able, to further support your mobility and health.
Best Practices and Recommendations
It’s crucial that we make sure to be present, and actively participate in online meetings - these simple actions can help maintain your company’s thriving culture and your clients’ trust in your work and reputation.
Now that your at-home set up is ready to go, let’s talk about some sustainable best practices and recommendations to keep you productive and your time spent well and efficiently.
Pretend you are going into the office
Some people do things like go out the front door and come back inside through another door or the garage to create a sense that you are “going” to work. Others make sure to “get dressed” for work, so it’s really up to you and how you would like to make the practice something that’s intentional and easy for you to repeat every day.
Stay On Task With A Schedule
Working on a different time frame, whether it’s starting earlier or later, can make it hard to stay on task. We recommend creating a daily and weekly schedule that keeps you and your tasks in check. This includes blocking out time for lunch, time for coffee and bathroom breaks, or any other type of work and non-work related task you plan to accomplish each week.
Stay Involved with Meetings
When work meetings move out of the physical conference room and into the virtual online meeting place, it can be easy to be tempted to want to cut out early or miss that weekly meeting entirely. If we aren’t physically present, then does it really matter? John can give you notes later. However, when we start avoiding and dropping out of meetings, we lose touch with our team, and sometimes even our clients. It’s crucial that we make sure to be present, and actively participate in online meetings - these simple actions can help maintain your company’s thriving culture and your clients’ trust in your work and reputation.
Track Your Time Wisely
At GSATi, we thrive on time tracking. It’s how we invoice our clients, track project progress, and keep our team in check. It also helps us better budget time spent as a team, so that we can dedicate time to growing together as well as accomplishing all that’s needed to be done for ultimate client satisfaction. If your company does not already invest in a time tracking program, we recommend looking into programs like Harvest, but there are plenty of other great apps out there, to choose from that might be more suitable for your work lifestyle.
Remain Social - It’s Good For You!
Working from outside of the house and not from the office is highly important. As humans, we are highly social creatures, extroverted, introverted, shy or otherwise. Even if it just means working in the furthest corner of the coffee shop or coworking space - getting out of the house and into a space occupied by other humans is good for mental stimulation and perfect for opportunities to make friends with other remote working individuals! We love working from places like Stoke Coworking in Downtown Denton when we can, or coffee shops like West Oak Coffee Bar, where there’s plenty of strong wifi, good seating, and accessible outlets.
Stay Moving - Fighting the Sedentary Lifestyle
There are conflicting reports out there that speak to the health benefits and risks of the remote work lifestyle. Some say it’s healthier, some say it is not. At GSATi, we always encourage our team members to maintain a healthy and active lifestyle as they are able, whether it be in-office or at home. This can be anything from taking walking breaks around the block, to using your lunch hour for a quick trip to the gym. This can also mean cooking more meals at home or trying out meal prep programs like HelloFresh that keep your lunches timely and healthy. Your choices to move and eat well help further combat the long term side effects of operating in these sedentary realms of work.
Own Your Boundaries at Home
People don’t talk about the lopsided responsibilities WFH people assume amongst their at-home community. You might live in a space with people who work outside of the house, or with people who aren’t your kids. Those individuals might make a habit out of assuming that you, the person who is “always” at home, is “always” available to pick up the slack where needed. That is most certainly not the case. Your time during your workday is your time spent doing a professional job, and with that, comes boundaries and terms that are needed to be established in order to protect you and your future. Don’t be afraid to set boundaries with your roommates and family about things like the kids’ carpool, being available for the cable person, watching for the package, etc.
Conclusion
Working from home is a different situation from person to person, company to company. Everyone has their own rules, regulations, and expectations based on the mission and the message of their company or organization. We hope that these brief tips and tricks, though based on our own research and practices, can help you better thrive as a remote employee or team member. As always, if you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions, don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us today.
Resources:
Remote Work: Tips, Tricks and Best Practices for Success via SitePoint
How to Work From Home: 20 Tips From People Who Do It Successfully via HubSpot
32 Working from Home Tips You Can Do Right Now (Updated) via Nextiva
Nail the Interview Question, "What Is Best About Working from Home?" via The Balance Careers
