Vanya Wryter Consulting Services

Tag: working from home

  • Working with a Remote Team: What You Need to Know

    Working with a Remote Team: What You Need to Know

    Remote work definitely has its perks – no commute, flexible work time, and relaxed dress code. Working from home can also be a bit of a downer. You may feel alone compared to working in person at the office. Working with a remote team isn’t the same as working face-to-face, but when done well, you’ll feel a sense of community.

    Here’s what you need to know about working with a remote team, from the culture to the technology of communication.

    The Tech that Connects Across Borders

    Remote work is like taking all the people working in the same office and scattering them apart like jigsaw pieces.

    It’s the same team, but each person is in a different place. Your reliance on technology increases thousandfold, while your ability to read people through body language (smiles, frowns, crossed arms, slouches) becomes almost obsolete.

    You’re learning a new way to communicate.

    Remote teams decide on what types of technology to communicate urgent messages, lengthy messages, schedules, and work tasks. You’ll be learning what type of message goes on which platform and when.

    For example, messaging apps like Telegram, Signal, Skype, and Whatsapp might be used for group chats for instant and urgent messages.

    Platforms such as Asana, Monday.com, Clickup, and Zoho can be used to track work tasks. Information for each task includes who the task is assigned to, when it’s due, what needs to be done, progress as multiple steps in a task are completed, and extra notes on what a team member needs to know.

    Knowing what messaging goes where and how often you need to check and update various chats and apps is crucial. If you’re confused about the system, then communication can break down fast. If communication is clear, then it will be efficient, no matter where everyone works and what time zone they are in.

    Remote Teams Socialize at Odd Hours

    Over time, you’ll adapt to the time zone differences and learn to work around them. For example, if you live in Canada and your role in a task is completed first, then you’ll leave instructions about what you’ve done in the project management application. When your teammate wakes up in Europe, your teammate will then work on the next step in that task.

    Notes to your teammate about when something will be done, or when you can meet for a quick virtual chat will automatically include a date, time and time zone. You may even readjust your sleep schedule so that you can work at the same time and respond to messages more quickly.

    I’ve worked with a remote team with members in Europe and Asia, so we discovered our sweet spot for messaging each other in a steady flow of conversation was best in the early hours of the morning.

    Just like water cooler conversations at the office, conversations can become social during work hours. The main difference is these conversations take on a more international theme.

    For example, you might trade food photos to compare local cuisine, or compare notes on how you celebrate Christmas in your part of the country or the world. During the pandemic, the remote team I worked with shared stories about the pandemic and how people survived in each of our countries.

    You start to make friends in other parts of the country and other parts of the world.

    Getting on the Same Page with the Team

    When working with a remote team, you may find that one of the biggest challenges is getting everyone on the same page. Whether your team members are located in the same city or in different countries, it’s important to have regular meetings to go over big picture goals.

    The team should have a regular meeting at least once a week to review the major goals and priorities of the company. If new projects are starting, the team should discuss the purpose of the project and go over any questions people may have.

    Summary

    Working with a remote team is different from working in-person with your teammates. You’ll need to be familiar with technology and the system that your company has set up for people to communicate with each other. With a global team, you may even need to change when you work or, at least, when you expect your teammate to reply. However, working remotely may also have its perks, such as making connections with people from other parts of the world.

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  • What You Need to Know About Remote Work

    What You Need to Know About Remote Work

    How would you feel about mixing work and home life? Many workers got a taste of remote work, or working from home, when the pandemic turned our lives upside down in 2020. Some people loved the change while others absolutely hated it.

    If you haven’t tried it yet, and you’re wondering what it’s like, here’s what you need to know about remote work. If you already have been a remote worker, would you agree with the following points about blurring work and home life?

    Isolation and lack of in-person interaction

    At first, you might think it’s a nice break from your coworkers if you’re working from home. The co-worker you dislike running into is finally gone from your life, and the co-worker who interrupts you to offer the latest company gossip is finally quiet. Then weeks go by, and you become a hate or love it remote worker.

    Here are some reasons why you hate it: you miss having lunch with the co-worker who is also your friend. You miss the conversations you had whenever you collaborated with a team. Sure, you have team meetings on Zoom, but everyone is mindful of the time and sticks to the point. When you worked in person, there was time for social conversation to lighten the mood while you worked.

    In contrast, if you’re an introvert, you might love remote work. Interaction with your co-workers is at a minimum. No more purposeless water cooler conversations. Now, you can work in peace and get what you need done on time. You don’t feel isolated at all. You also enjoy the short commute from your bedroom to your home office.

    Some people may be less extreme, preferring some face-to-face in-person work time and the flexibility to work from home without interruption.

    A makeshift office that doubles up as kitchen and family space

    Your office may be a temporary workspace, a desk by day and family dining table at night. It’s easy to be distracted by family members or the family pet as they pass from room to room. Virtual meetings with the office may be a challenge. For example, a friend said her co-workers are now familiar with her husband’s comic character T-shirts because he passed in the background quite often.

    This makeshift office may be less comfortable without a proper chair or room lighting. You might start to get annoyed at your spouse, sitting at the other end of the dining table, clicking away on the computer or talking during a meeting. It’s a change because you used to have your own private office with a window view and now you’re sharing your desk with someone you see from morning til night.

    Lunch has required some changes too. It’s nice you no longer have to spend time packing your lunch the night before. You can heat up or cook something from your kitchen. Or you can order take out. But you miss popping out of the office to grab something from a nearby restaurant for lunch. It was an excuse to get some fresh air.

    Different level of professionalism

    Is it necessary to dress up if your co-workers can’t see you? You’re accustomed to wearing comfy clothes when you’re at home, not stiff suits or heel-biting shoes. Perhaps you dressed up when you first started remote work because you enjoyed the psychological separation between work time and home time.

    As the months trudged on, however, your formality may have started to decline. For example, why dress up from head to toe if the camera only shows you from the waist up during a meeting? Why not look good from the waist up and let your lower half get comfy in jogging pants?

    It may also be more practical to dress casual at home because of the added flexibility. A friend said that during coffee breaks, he would do some housework before returning to work. It seemed more productive than what he used to do at the office, which was complete crossword puzzles during coffee breaks.

    Overnight technological savvy and IT nerdiness

    When you used to work at an office, you had someone to call on whenever you had an IT issue. While working from home, you may have found an overnight need to become technologically savvy with your own computer.

    With remote work, you had to set up your home office for virtual meetings, learn how to install communication and project management apps on your computer and/or phone by yourself. If you needed the “IT guy”, he would need to access your computer remotely or advise you over the phone or by chat messaging.

    On the upside, you may have figured out a way to let the office know that you’re online during regular office hours, even if you aren’t.

    Summary

    Is working from home something you would want for the rest of your career? Remote work has changed the habits of many office workers. Some prefer remote work while others can’t wait to return to old habits. What do you think? Would you prefer to work from home?

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  • Self Care Tips Based on Your Personality Type

    Self Care Tips Based on Your Personality Type

    These days, more people are not just working from home – they’re working longer hours. Home and work life are blurring together, affecting mental and physical health. This trend is not a positive one and needs to change. You deserve a break, so here are self care tips by personality type to help you avoid burnout.

    Why self care by personality type? Some people by nature work harder out of a need for competition, while others find it more difficult to maintain focus. My business mentors told me about the four basic personality types, which I describe here but with different names (to avoid copyright issues).  Which personality type are you, and what will you do for self care?

    Self-Driven Hard Worker

    The self-driven hard worker runs on never-ending batteries. They will forget to eat while they pursue a goal for the day. This personality type are often leaders and like to get straight to the point because they don’t like to waste time. They enjoy the finer things in life, desiring a lifestyle of luxury and wealth as an ultimate goal. If they are on vacation, or playing a game, they tend to be competitive and need an objective for the activity. They can be extremely focused.

    Taking a moment for self care is most challenging for the self driven, hard worker. They will ask questions such as, “Why take the night off to watch a movie when I can keep going and hit my next milestone?” Achievement after achievement is its own reward.

    Unfortunately, these hard workers could burn out and suffer from health problems. They need to take a much-needed break to eat a proper meal and enjoy some fresh air with friends or family! Having a little fun will not result in disaster or an episode of laziness, and this is hard fact for them to accept.

    Detail-Oriented Analyst

    People who fall under this personality type tend to over analyze and be very critical of many aspects of their life. Unlike the hard worker, who will take risks, the analyst needs to know all the facts up front before making a decision. They love details and keep meticulous records. They can be very tidy and organized, and they feel safest when they can anticipate what their future holds.

    A detail-oriented analyst will take the time to pamper themselves or take a vacation if they know that everything is under control and carefully planned out. They will take the night off after they have planned out their day for tomorrow. They will try out a new spa treatment or yoga class if they have researched it first.

    You can count on the analyst to thoroughly research your vacation destination, to plan out activities, schedules, and prices. It may intimidate them a bit at first but encourage an analyst to leap into something without knowing what they are getting into. Ask them to join you for a night about town and tell them your destination will be a pleasant surprise. A little adventure can be fun!

    Devoted Humanitarian

    The humanitarian puts friends and family first. Their objectives in life and career tend to revolve around what they can do for the people they care about, as well as humankind in general. They tend to be shy and quiet in personality (but not all of them are introverts), and they like to play it safe. They will work hard if it means their paycheck will cover the cost of hockey practice and uniforms for their child, or ensure that their parents have a nicer place to live. They tend to be selfless.

    Self care can be a challenge for these humanitarians. They are so focused in giving and caring for others that they will sacrifice their own time, well being, or finances for another person. They need to try to put themselves first occasionally to avoid burn out.

    Instead of giving their spouse a day off, for example, they should take the day off themselves and not feel guilty about it. Even if family members don’t show appreciation for what a humanitarian personality does, these personality types can give themselves a well-deserved time off.

    Big-Picture Enthusiast

    The big picture enthusiast is social and gets along with people. They can be the life of the party and the team member that coworkers consider most amicable. If there is a project at work, they tend to focus on the bigger goals and encourage people to become involved. However, they are sloppy with details and find it difficult to stay focused, especially if a task isn’t fun. Their biggest motivator is fun. If they like an idea, they will jump in and try it out, often without weighing the consequences.

    For a personality type that likes to enjoy life, they too need some time for self care. They need to set goals and check in to make sure that these goals are achieved. Did they reach their income goal for the month? Did they complete all the mundane paperwork?

    Taking the time to ground themselves in these less exciting aspects of life is important. Otherwise, they may find themselves missing out on important deadlines or stressed out and dealing with the aftermath of bad decisions because they didn’t do enough research. Enjoying life is good, but everything needs balance.

    Summary

    No one is exactly 100 percent one of these personality types. You could be predominately one of these types when you’re working and another when you aren’t. You could be a combination of any of these types, like a combination pizza of multiple flavors. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of each type will help you focus on what you can do for your own health and well being. What self care will you work on this week?

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