I’ve been working remotely full-time for about 3 years.
In that time span, I’ve:
- left one job
- started a new one
- became a digital nomad (more on this later).
I think I’ve officially earned my “professional remote worker” badge by now. Here are the tips you need to know if you want to dive into the remote work lifestyle, like me!
Where you remote work matters.
Find a dedicated space to work that’s not related to where you sleep, relax or have fun.
Yes! Finding a dedicated space was hard for me too. I used to work from my bed and the living room. I had to stop. I moved to a dining room table and also went to Starbucks or Ponce City Market sometimes.
Leave your house every once in a while and find a market, coffee shop, or co-working space to work.
Remember to eat.
It’s so important to eat! I’ve gone multiple days where I’ve forgotten to eat because when I’m working from home, my days just seem to fly by. This is not good. In order to remember to eat, I block off time on my calendar for lunch and set a reminder. This is something that I tell everyone to do.
Cooking can be a lot, so I’d advise you to use the following to make eating as easy as possible:
- Use a good delivery/grocery pick-up service. This makes shopping for grocers super easy. Personally, I shop for groceries online and use Kroger’s pick-up feature. Alternatively, you can use services like Amazon Fresh or Instacart.
- Subscribe to a meal kit (this is optional, but it helps make cooking easy). I used Hello Fresh for a while and enjoyed not having to think about what to cook. It can get a little pricey, so I advise you to plan out how often you invest in these meals. Use it for either lunch or dinner, but don’t do both!
- Invest in a personal blender. These little blenders are powerful and come in handy for me when I need quickly make breakfast smoothies, a snack, or fuel. You can use these to make Açaí Bowls as well! Here are some smoothie recipes that you can make if you need some ideas.
- Get an air fryer.
Take advantage of “remote work.”
I’d say that the greatest blessing of being a remote worker is the ability to be able to work literally anywhere your heart desires. I will say that this would be considered an intermediate-level move though. I say get used to your job, and the concept of remote work before you decide to travel to unfamiliar territories. Remember, when you decide to travel you have to take into account things like time differences, communication styles, and more. It becomes a complicated balancing act for sure.
When traveling during the work week, it’s best to work during the day from somewhere local (like a cool coffee shop) and do fun activities after work.
I would advise that if u can, take off at least for 1 week or a few days when you go somewhere new. So that you can at least enjoy the city/country.
Block your calendar.
Your time is so important. Make sure to create chunks on your calendar. I like to set deep work blocks and set them to Do Not Disturb. I also like to set general Do Not Disturb blocks. I use them for errands, exercising or eating, or just taking a break in general! It’s a learning process but you’ll work it out!
Learn how to manage your time.
In the end, time management boils down to two things: being organized and being self-aware/ knowing your work style.
A few things that have helped me with managing my time include:
- Creating dedicated calendars
- Blocking my calendar (like I mentioned above)
- Keeping all my assignments in one place (aka using project management tools)
- Using timers and alarms
- Documenting how I use my time during the day
Also, ask your team if they use project management tools or any organization tools to help their employees stay organized. You can read about more ways to manage your time here.
Meet up with your team IRL
And if you can, also meet up with your team wherever they are at least every other quarter (2x a yr). It really does help with bonding/getting to know the ppl on ur team.
Go work supply shopping (and don’t be cheap!)
When you’re working from home, comfort is key. I’ve learned to not be cheap and get what I need. After all, you are working for 8 hours a day, you need comfort. Here’s what you should get:
- A good chair (I still haven’t found one that I like. If you have any suggestions, drop them in the comments!)
- A wireless/Bluetooth mouse
- Noise-canceling headphones (and a good playlist)
- A good water bottle (to stay hydrated)