This summer or fall, you may find yourself starting a new job remotely, working remotely on personal or summer projects, or other virtual activities.
I've been working remotely since March 16th, and I've picked up helpful tips and habits along the way that have made the transition from my office in Thornton A-wing to a makeshift desk in my living room a bit smoother.
If you find yourself working remotely, and especially if it's the first time, review these essential tips on making it work from experts.23 Essential Tips for Working Remotely from Inc.com
This is perhaps my favorite article of the bunch, packed with many of the tips I've learned over the last two and a half months. Here are my favorites:
“1. Cut yourself some slack. Working from home can be a big transition. You might feel any combination of lonely, isolated, stressed, frustrated, anxious, unmotivated, or -- on the other hand -- relieved, relaxed, energized, or productive. It's all OK and normal. Any transition takes time to get used to, so try to be easy on yourself.”
“2. Take scheduled breaks. Try setting an alarm to get up and stretch every hour or so...Move to a separate area -- away from your email -- to eat lunch for 30 minutes...When the weather is nice, I like to do conference calls while taking a walk outside.”
“3. Protect your workspace. Talk to family members or roommates about the hours you are working from home and the ground rules during those hours...I'm a fan of the scribbled "Do Not Disturb!" sign taped to my door.”
Working from home? 4 tips for staying productive from Google
This is a must read. I'm implementing all 4 tips and they're KEY to my daily work. I'll share the tips here but you should go and read the rest for yourself!
TIPS: Create “work” triggers for your brain. Stay motivated with a list. Make a schedule for everything. Create a process for collaboration.
6 Ways to Make the Most of a Remote Internship from Handshake
I've found tip #1 to be incredibly valuable as I've worked from home for the last 12 weeks:
"1. Set boundaries, even if your hours and location are flexible. Because remote internships are often project-based rather than hourly, it can be easy to treat them like homework, squeezing in a few minutes of work here and there between other commitments." Setting “office hours” can be a key to success.
I add advising appointments, team meetings, webinars, and time to work on projects to my calendar. I fill in breaks with smaller tasks that need my attention. And when my “office hours” are over for the day, I try my best to set aside work until the next scheduled work time. This allows me to focus on other commitments, as well as bring my full attention back to work the next time I have “office hours”.
10 Tips for a Successful Remote Internship from the UVA Career Center
My favorite tips on the list is a great one for remote or in-person internships… “Keep a record of your accomplishments. Make sure you write down your achievements; this will help you when you update your resume when the internship is over.”
I'm even adopting a similar strategy this summer every week I'm tracking progress made towards my large goals so that I don't overlook all of the important steps (big or small) taken along the way to accomplishing the end result.
Starting a new job remotely during coronavirus? Here's what you need to know to succeed from The Muse
The Muse is one of my favorite resources for career-related content. Here they've shared 7 tips for starting a remote work experience, including:
“2. Understand Expectations. You might want to take some extra time to understand your manager's expectations on everything from individual tasks to your overall onboarding, especially if you're starting a job that wasn't intended to be remote...you can't just stop in to ask a quick question and they can't help you course-correct in real time quite as easily. So you'll want to be proactive and make sure you understand your role and the tasks you are working on.”
“3. Learn How Your Team Communicates. While you, your manager, and your coworkers are all working remotely—perhaps for the first time—it's especially important to find out how everyone prefers to communicate, so you know whether to monitor your email, Slack, or another channel your team relies on. If your colleagues are inundated with email, ask if they'd prefer a call or instant message for quick questions.”
Several times over the last two months I've found it necessary to step away from email and call, text, or Zoom with a colleague.
Guide for starting a remote job from GitLab
GitLab authored a nicely organized guide, featuring a table of contents on the right hand side of the page, text, and videos. Check this one out if you're seeking more tips and/or prefer audio-visual learning.