Our Marketing Team went out to eat pizza last week after work. It was a chance for us to relax after a long day and to get to know our new colleague. We also got to show him around the city. After a few drinks, the conversation shifted to casual shop talk and inside jokes. Remote work was also brought up. It was a lively discussion that followed. One voice was against remote work and listed all the potential downsides. I am, and will continue to be, a strong advocate for remote work and will defend it in all circumstances. However, one voice was strongly against it and listed all the possible downsides. Many articles on it point out trust as the main issue and offer advice on how to keep an eye on your employees and ensure they are working. These articles are written by and for managers. Here’s $0.02 for employees!
Since years, I have been working remotely. Since my first freelance job, when I was translating and transcribing text, to steady jobs such as Community Manager and photographer. This all happened naturally. I was just a follower of the flow, no matter what. This means that I didn’t look for tricks or tips. I love my process and believe it is the best at any moment. Now, I can look back and see how much I have improved everything. The best thing about working remotely? The increase in productivity. Working remotely should lead to an increase in productivity. This is the sign of a well-designed system that works. This is the sign of improvement. It could be the work environment, motivation, discipline, or even the job itself. My challenge is to keep the office focused with the same (or almost) same focus. The pink elephant in your room?
Is trust really the key? Of course, it was at the beginning. At the beginning, of course. There are many distractions in the office. Most of them interrupt my work process and I need to take some time to regain my focus. We are even thinking of snoozing instant messenger entirely a couple of hours a day, so we can devote ourselves to tasks without any interruptions.There’s this amazing point raised in Talent Economy’s post: If I am working from home, spend three hours on focused work and the next five minutes popping my laundry in the dryer, does that make me an unproductive employee? My view is that if the quality of work remains the same or even better, then there’s no need to discuss the matter further. If employees work better remotely, it’s high time for remote work to be considered a legitimate option. You have earned it. Now it’s your turn to live up to the expectations. If you are a manager and still have doubts, remember that trust-based companies excel in almost all fields. It’s obvious that you hired someone because they are trustworthy and can do their job well. If you have doubts about them, you should put it into practice.
Transparency is key to our team’s success. Every task is assigned a start date and due date so that everyone can see what I am working on at any moment. Weekly reports are also filled out on Friday. These reports summarize everything we did and help us plan for the week ahead. So you ca
