Transitioning to Remote Work

4 MIN READ

In light of the disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19), many are finding themselves working remotely, getting laid off, having their hours reduced, and more.

This article is focused on those who are able to continue working from home. For those of you who are looking for advice and resources because you cannot work from home, please Contact Me and let's take it from there. 
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A recording of the Transitioning to Remote Work webinar on March 18 is available here (54:26).

How should I tackle working from home?

For whatever reason, we're working from home now. All hundreds of thousands of us. And we're all coming at this new reality from VERY different perspectives. Here are just a few of the perspectives I talk about on my webinar that goes with this Blog article. I'm sure there are many more where this came from.

• ​The Solo entrepreneur
• The Manager
• The Professional
• The Virtual Professional

Once we have reflected on who we are and where we're coming from, we should take a deep breath because we understand 1) our own level of comfort and acumen working remotely, 2) my company's level of comfort and acumen working remotely, and 3) my ecosystem's level of comfort and acumen working remotely. It's important to know these three things because then you will know the #1 thing:

It is NOT 100% your responsibility to figure this out. It's only 1/3 of your responsibility. 

Now that you believe that, you can focus on where you have control, and the first place you have control is how you tackle remote work.

For this I offer you: Mer's Top 3 Tips for Remote Work.

For Tip #1 for Remote Work, I discuss Mindfulness. Here is what you need to know:

• Practice regular mindful, diaphragmatic breathing --> Breathe past your FIXED mindset into a GROWTH mindset.
• Develop routines to practice mindfulness throughout the day. For example, you can:
  • Meditate silently for ~ 5 min
  • Mindfully walk for ~ 10 min
  • Listen to music sitting/dancing for ~ 15 min
• Schedule (yes, in your calendar if you have to!) a practice in the morning for mindfulness:
  • Say a mantra to set your tone for the day
  • For example, What should I be but just what I am? (Thanks Edna St. Vincent Millay!)

For Tip #2 for Remote Work, I share Mer's Tips for Over-Communicating. Some of these include:

• Use video when you can, otherwise show your photo. When your camera is on, show where you are (home office) or use a fun backdrop.
• Set new normals and boundaries for how we “show up” at work. No make up? Why not!
• Save the first 5 minutes at the beginning and the end for human interaction.
• Agendize in advance and collaborate on notes.

For Tip #3 for Remote Work, I discuss Organization. A few ways to get even more organized than ever include:

• Be transparent about your work schedule on your calendar. Block time in 1- to 2- hour chunks to plow through projects without distraction.
• Develop routines in the morning before you start work, mid-day to give yourself a break, and in the afternoon/evening to give yourself a true “end” to the work day.

Next, I offer: Mer's Top 3 Tips for Managing.
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For Tip #1 for Managing, I discuss Staying Connected. You will need to take advantage of tools like Salesforce, Quip, Slack, and more to make connection possible. You'll also need to be more strategic with your meetings, which could include:

• ​Use agendas that guide what will be discussed and who needs to be ready to discuss it. 
• Let people see that agenda before meetings and type notes into it during meetings. 

For Tip #2 for Managing, I share how to Be Visible. You will need to develop and/or refine routines like:

• Updating your calendar on a regular basis with your work meetings, personal appointments, and project time.
• Updating your calendar so it is up-to-date with what your team needs to see.
• Using our team’s tools to make it clear when I’m available and when I’m not.

For Tip #3 for Managing, I share how to Be Transparent with Mer's Tips for Over-Documenting.  Some of these include:

• Learn to code switch on paper because everyone takes in information differently.
• Practice mindful documentation. Be aware when you are documenting too much or too little. Don’t spend so much of your time documenting you’re not getting real work done!
• Make your team’s tasks visible so that everyone knows what everyone is up to.
• Give your teams a way to track 1) Ownership, 2) Effort, and 3) Priority.
• Identify the early tech adopters and empower them to create How-To’s for others.
• Create a way to submit issues (e.g. cases or tickets) so that they can be triaged.

Lastly, I would like to share: Mer's Top 10 Favorite Apps.

Rather than go through them in detail in this article, you'll find their logos below. You can learn more about them in the AdvancED Toolbox and in my handout Transitioning to Remote Work: Resources. You can also Contact Me with any questions or to ask for recommendations.​

The first Transitioning to Remote Work webinar was hosted on Wednesday, March 18 at 6:00 pm PDT. Click here for the recording (54:26)!
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The next webinar is on Thursday, March 26 from 11:30 am to 1:30 PDT. Register on Eventbrite and join us, you can learn while you have your lunch!