3 Do’s, and don’ts to make your remote team more productive
DO
Elevate communication for clarity
When working remote, you have the luxury of disconnecting. Sometimes this means you can reduce your communication to a few simple messages. As with all things that are reduced, you may hit a point of diminishing returns, and in Remote work, you’ll surely need to modify that bandwidth of communication to match the issue at hand.
At the first sign of a miscommunication, elevate the bandwidth. Short non-specific messages evolve into longer messages with emoji. Longer messages, turn into direct messages without distraction. Direct messages turn into audio or even video chat. When something doesn’t feel right, quickly and effectively elevate your communication. It’s best for everyone to remember that remote work, like any work, only functions properly when everyone is rowing in the same direction. Don’t let your team assume. Do what you can to keep your communication clear.
DON’T
Assume linear time
When you’ve got 3 emails, a text message, and several unread chat notifications, you read that in the order you want. I’ve personally had people get frustrated because I reply to “Message A”, while they had some other information in “Message B” that I didn’t see yet. It’s okay! Sure, I have to adjust my reply, but that’s not the end of the world.
We can help each other here. Never assume async communication will happen in a specific order. That’s why it’s important to elevate communication when you need clarity or add context to an existing message. Remote work respects time, and by that nature, you have to be careful about when and how you command it, both for yourself and others. Add circumstance and perspective to your messages, and when that doesn’t work, ask to elevate the bandwidth.
DO
Enforce flexibility
One thing that comes organically to remote work is the flexibility of time. It’s easy to mimic a traditional workday, but doing so undercuts the utility of remote work. When you’re on, you should be rested, organized, and focussing with blistering intensity. Look at your work through a flexible and inflexible lens. If you’re not able to command a break when you need it, you’re doing it wrong.
DON’T
Become OK with distraction
Solving inflexibility by giving a lower percentage of attention to each task is worse than not doing that task.
I remember being tired after lunch in an office, wishing only for a short nap. Skipping that nap meant simply enduring the rest of my hours for that day. In remote work, take that nap. Listen to your body, and care about the quality of your work. When something comes up, as things always do, go handle it. If you don’t, you’re costing trust in what you do, both to yourself and your team.
DO
Ask for feedback
The best are those who are always improving themselves. Think you’re doing a good job? Ask. When a tree stops growing, it starts dying.
As a secondary bonus, asking improves communication. To go back to my tree analogy, it’s not just the trunk that needs constant feedback to grow, it’s each of the roots. Actively seeking feedback creates a powerful connection with your team.
DON’T
Hit snooze on people
If you’re not keeping track of your communication, some parts will still flourish, but other parts will falter. We live in a world where notifications flood our eyes each day. It’s easy to use an office-like mentality where if something is important, it will eventually get your attention. That’s not true in remote work. When people go quiet in remote work, don’t assume everything is fine.
You don’t have to be involved in everyone’s business, but establish a baseline and don’t hit the snooze when that baseline drops.
Have a minute? Read me by Gant
Gant Laborde is Chief Innovation Officer at Infinite Red, published author, adjunct professor, worldwide public speaker, and a mad scientist in training. Clap/follow/tweet or visit him at a conference.
About RemotePanda:
RemotePanda is a global marketplace for remote workers. Our concierge service means you have someone to take care of your needs right from profile matching to hiring and throughout the project. We set the KPIs for the work and build accountability within the process for the remote worker.
Thinking Remote workers, Think RemotePanda
Stay connected with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube
Also, Read our blogs here and watch our webinars.
