Remote work is the new corporate office.
We know that you have heard of the term remote work, but what is it? How do you get involved? What are some common misconceptions about it? Today, we have the answers for you.
The ability to work outside of the office has been feasible for a few years, but it’s only been in the past two to three years that it has become more common. It’s become mainstream.
The truth is that people, mainly the Millennial Generation and Generation X, have the desire to create a life outside of work. They know that they don’t need to be working 40 hours a week to get their job completed, they believe in getting paid for what they do, and they don’t want to work in toxic environments.
This means that having physical offices will become few and far between, only having people come into an office if it’s absolutely necessary.
What is Remote Work?
Remote work is when an employee, freelancer, or entrepreneur takes their job to a location other than a central office that’s operated by an employer. These locations vary depending on the person, but can be their home, a coworking space, a private office, or even on the other side of the world. For example, one of Wifi Artists’ team members works as an Online Business Manager for a few different clients, and they travel monthly to a different location. They work from a mix of their room, cafes, and coworking spaces.
Basically, instead of having a designated desk and designated work hours, remote workers work from wherever they please and get things done on their own time. Some remote workers do work designated hours. However, they all get the freedom to design their day around their goals and dream work-life balance.
There has been a big shift in what an appropriate work space is and the remote working community has capitalized on that shift.
How?
I know what you’re thinking… How do people work remotely? How do they communicate? Isn’t it complete chaos? Let’s get into it.
There are many ways to work remotely and a surplus of online programs that support that kind of work. Programs like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Zoom allow for easy communication among team members. Other programs like ClickUp, Asana, and GoHighLevel provide teams with project management and task management along with another level of communication.
Although when you first start working remotely, or your team does, it can feel overwhelming and chaotic, it quickly becomes easy to manage and even increases productivity. Frankly, all an employee needs is good wifi, a VPN, and a laptop, and they can get work done from anywhere.
Why Remote?
There is a multitude of benefits to working remotely.
Flexibility
Working remotely allows employees to really design their schedule as something that works for them. They need to pick up their child from school at 3pm? No worries! Want to pop out for a coffee? Great! Dishes to do? Take a 10 min break & get them done! They can design their schedule around their life, around their family, and around their dreams and desires - this is the biggest benefit of working remotely.
Increase quality of life
When you’re working from an office, even the best of the best offices, there’s always a bit of drama here and there - drama that can really stress someone out. Additionally, trying to juggle working 8 hours daily away from home with their family, friends, and wellness routine, can be very hard. Not to mention that you’re taking out the daily commute to the office which can stress anyone out, especially during rush hour.
Consider this: 69% of remote workers reported lower absenteeism than non-remote employees according to a 2014 study by PGi. This stat is so important. When people work from their own space, with no commute, they’re much less stressed. Less stress means happier, healthier workers, and better work produced by them.
Increased productivity
Compared to in-office workers, remote workers are more likely to put extra effort into their job. 65% of full-time employees believe that working remotely would increase productivity - and their bosses agree - according to the State and Work Productivity Report.
Cost savings
Think about how much it costs you to run your office every single day. This can cost anywhere between hundreds to thousands of dollars per day. Without an office, those expenses are gone - no rent, no utilities, and no lunchroom coffee, tea, and snacks. You will still need to provide the office materials required, but that cost is minimal compared to paying for a whole office every day.
And that isn’t even an inclusive list of every benefit for working remotely. There are so many out there. Trust us when we say, moving your business to remote working is for the best.
How Do You Get Started?
This lifestyle is pretty appealing isn’t it? Whether you’re an employer, freelancer, or an employee, there are numerous ways to get started in the remote working world.
If you’re an employee:
Before jumping into the remote work world, you’ll need to talk with your employer. This is something you should put a lot of thought into and make a proper game plan for. You’ll have an in-depth conversation with your employer that you need to be prepared for.
We suggest starting with research - find out the benefits and statistics of working remotely and put together a case study for your employer. Present this to your employer and use your persuasion skills to get it approved. It might start out as a trial period, but we think it’s definitely worth it!
If you’re a freelancer:
You’re probably already living the remote work life if you’re a freelancer! Think about your clientele - can you move from in-person meetings to virtual meetings? Can you do 80%+ of your work remotely? If yes to both - it’s time to start working fully remotely, even if it’s just for a trial period.
If you’re an employer:
If you run a business, and you are thinking of moving to remote work, you probably already know all the benefits, we don’t need to convince you! We suggest you make a plan to transition from in person work to remote work and present it to your team. You’ll need them to support you in every step of the way, they are an important asset to your team and you want this to be as comfortable for them as possible.
Common Misconceptions
By listing all the benefits of remote working, it wouldn’t make sense not to mention the common misconceptions that come up when we talk about remote working. This is not an exhaustive list but the most common ones we hear.
Remote workers have issues with communication
It’s true that you can’t just walk into your employees' offices to check in when working remotely. It’s also true that they set more boundaries when working remotely. However, what’s not true is that they don’t communicate. If anything, you probably get more communication from remote workers as they are more productive and have the energy to update you at the end of the day. Plus, there are many programs, Slack, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams, that allow you to have day-to-day conversations with them online.
There is no such thing as a “break” with remote working
This is a huge fear we hear from remote workers all the time. And it’s true that sometimes you don’t know when to stop, however, if you set the right boundaries with yourself, and with your employer, you’ll probably have MORE time outside of work. Lay down standards and set clear expectations between you and your employer and this will not be an issue.
Nothing actually gets done by remote workers
As we mentioned above, most remote workers are actually more productive than they were in an office. There are many different kinds of remote workers, but they all get their work done and then some. They are productive and they are there for you and your business. We hear this enough and can’t reiterate enough that it’s simply not true.
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If you’re already working remotely, you’ll want to check out our current programs to see if we’re traveling somewhere you want to visit. Wifi Artists is here to turn you from remote worker to thriving Digital Nomad, we want to see you cross locations off your bucket list one by one.
If you have any questions about our programs, we suggest you check out our FAQ page. If the question you have is not on our FAQ page, you can reach us via our contact form here. We will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Ready to travel with us? Check out our current program availability here and apply here. After applying, you will have a quick interview with one of our program leaders and you will be on your way to traveling in no time! We can’t wait to meet you.
