Working From Home:

A Beginner's Guide
Hi friend!

Chances are you're working from home now, as most of us do, and it
can be a new experience that differs from the work routine we’re used
to.

Ever since we have created Krisp noise cancelling app for conference
calls, we emphasized the importance of productivity in remote working
lifestyle. So we’ve created this guide to help you quickly grasp the
essentials of working from home, based on years of our knowledge, as
well as the expertise of leading remote companies.

This guide includes all the necessary tips, resources and tools that you
need for working from home, no matter if you are a beginner or a skilled
remote worker. Explore remote work trends deeper, learn the ground
rules of working from home, set up your beautiful home office, equip
the right tools and get some work done without having to spend time on
research.

We hope our guide will be useful to you and make your work from home
experience a bit less stressful.

Enjoy reading!

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 Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Why Work From Home is Here to Stay 3

How Is Work From Home Going To Stay, Even After COVID-19? 4
15 Remote Working Statistics You Need to Know in 2020 12
Chapter 2: How to Build a Home Office 20
Building Your Home Office from Scratch 21
Home Office Tips: How to Have a Clean Workspace 29
Chapter 3: How to stay productive working from home 35
How To Be Productive Working From Home In 7 Steps 36
How to Create a Work From Home Schedule That Works for You 46
How to Work From Home With Kids and Stay Productive 55
4 Timeless Productivity Principles for Remote Workers 63
How to Deal With Procrastination? 4 Main Types of Procrastinators 80
Chapter 4: Best Tools and Resources to Work from Home 87
Best Resources & Tools for Starting Remote Workers 88
Best Productivity Apps for Working from Home in 2020 97
Top 5 Relaxing Sounds To Help You Focus 111
Chapter 5: Conferencing at Home: The Do’s and Don’ts 118
What’s Better: Audio Conference or Video Conference? 119
8 Steps for Better Sound Quality in Conference Calls 126
Quick Guide to Conference Call Etiquette 133
Chapter 6: How to find a work from home job 139
How to Find Remote Work in 2020? 140
How To Prepare For That Important Remote Interview 146
How To Build Work Portfolio as a Remote Worker 153
Thank you for reading our guide! 159

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 • • • •
• • • •

Chapter 1:
Why Work From Home Is
Here to Stay
The world is shifting and remote work is growing in popularity. Read
about the state of remote work in 2020, some advantages and
disadvantages of working from home and why it’s here to stay.
How Is Work From Home Going To Stay,
Even After COVID-19?
Written by Kelly Dunning

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, only 7% of workers in the U.S. had the
flexibility to work from home – according to a report by the Pew
Research Center based on data from the National Compensation
Survey. 

However, millions more are adapting to working from their kitchen

tables, spare bedrooms and home offices due to office-closures and
shelter-in-place orders. Coronavirus transformed the work landscape
almost overnight – but will things stay this way?

Let’s take a look into some of the reasons why it took a major worldwide
pandemic to shift many workplaces towards remote work – and why
this new style of working might be around for the long term. 

Why Were Businesses Hesitant To Allow

Employees To Work From Home Before
Coronavirus?
While many businesses had the option to let their employees work from
home, they have been hesitant to switch over to this model. What were
some of their reservations?

• Many employers were worried about productivity. They were

concerned employees wouldn’t get as much done and would waste
time if they were allowed to work unsupervised. 

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 • Employers were also concerned about not being able to
communicate effectively with team members. 
• They also assumed that switching to remote work would be too big
of a change to handle. 
• Another concern was the need to invest in new technology and
software to make remote working possible. 

These concerns, and others, kept many businesses from taking the leap
to remote work. When the COVID-19 global pandemic hit, it gave many
businesses no choice but to address their hesitations and switch to the
work from home model. 

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Reasons Why Working From Home May Continue
After Coronavirus is Over
So, now that many businesses have switched over to working from
home in order to comply with lockdown rules during the pandemic – will
these habits stay? Will we continue to work from home – even when it’s
not required?

There are certainly many reasons why working from home may
continue after COVID-19, such as:

Employers Have Invested In It

Companies have set up the means, processes and technology their
teams need to work from home. Coronavirus made it necessary. This
transition likely included purchasing new technology and software,
setting up new schedules and routines, and establishing workflows. 

Since they have invested time, energy and capital into working from
home, they will be more likely to stick with it when all this is over. After
all, why not take advantage of what has already been established? 

The huge advantage to remote work is that the benefits and lower costs
of these systems only compound as the scale of the company grows.
Building a distributed team now means a company will be ideally set up
for growth over the next several years. 

It’s Healthier
Working from home is better for preventing the spread of diseases. This
doesn’t just include COVID-19 but also applies to any other colds, flu,
and illnesses. 

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Many office workers have felt the pressure to show up to work, even
when they are feeling under the weather. 

With a newfound focus on our collective health, perhaps workplaces

will want to reduce instances of coworkers bringing their coughs and
sniffles to the office. 

It’s Better For The Environment

If more businesses switched to a work from home system over the long
term, the environment could see some major benefits. 

For example, if an employee has an average daily roundtrip work

commute of 30 miles, according to Stanford’s carbon emissions
calculator they will be emitting 330lbs of carbon dioxide emissions
every month. That’s nearly four thousand pounds per year! Working
from home will eliminate those carbon emissions immediately (as well
as save you money on fuel!)

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In addition, if everyone worked from home, there would be no need to
use resources and valuable land to build large office buildings. Our
homes would do double duty as our offices instead, and we could use
office space for other purposes. 

It’s Good For Employee Happiness

Another reason why working from home might stick around is because it
makes employees happy. When your employees are happier, they are
more productive and more likely to be loyal to your organization. 

According to a study by Owl Labs called “The Global State of Remote

Work,” full-time remote workers say they are happy in their jobs 29%
more than on-site workers. After all, working from home can often allow
for a better work-life balance, less office drama and a lot less stress. 

Even just not having to brave a cold morning commute can be a

happiness-booster for employees. Instead, they can get a bit of extra
sleep, make a delicious home-cooked breakfast and log into their
workplace while still wearing their favorite pair of fuzzy slippers. 

It Improves Productivity
Many companies have been worried that their employees would be less
productive when working from home. They were concerned that
employees would abuse the arrangement, not working a full shift or not
focusing on the tasks. 

However, research has found that the opposite is true. People who work
from home have actually proven to be MORE productive. 

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In fact, according to a study conducted by Airtasker, remote employees
work 1.4 extra days a month than employees in an office – resulting in
more than three additional weeks of output per year. Employees
working from home often face fewer distractions and can focus on their
work in a more meaningful, self-directed way. 

It Saves Money
The truth is that many organizations make decisions with the bottom
line in mind. Considering this, there is something to be said for how
much money working from home can save the business. 

There’s no need for the company to pay for office space, supplies,
electricity, computers or any of the other expenses that keep the office
running. Real estate needs are reduced significantly when only a
handful of vital employees need to remain onsite. Overhead can be
drastically reduced, allowing companies to allocate that capital
elsewhere. 

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For example, when the company Trip.com (previously CTrip)
experimented with letting their employees work from home, they figured
that they saved around $2,000 per year per employee on office space.
The findings were published in a study by the National Bureau of
Economic Research. 

Of course, the other benefits of remote work, such as improved

employee loyalty and productivity, will also influence the bottom line in
a positive way. Overall, the work from home model is much more
effective and efficient.

It Allows Companies to Hire Better Talent

Another huge advantage to working with a remote team is that your
hiring options are no longer limited to your physical location. You can
hire the best person for the job, no matter where they are located. This
will allow you to build an incredibly strong team of people around the
world who are the best at what they do. 
Also, a flexible work from home policy itself attracts better talent. When
word gets out that you allow your employees the freedom to work from
anywhere they please. This can make your company more desirable to
work with. 

It Creates Opportunities for Diversity

Last but definitely not least, working from home is offering us incredible
opportunities to improve workplace diversity. The online work
environment can be free of bias and microaggressions, making it more
comfortable 
Remote work makes it easier to employ talent from different countries
all over the world – adding a global perspective to your team. Team
members can be hired from anywhere and bias is reduced, as accents

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can’t be heard when you type. When employees work remotely, the
focus is on their output rather than their appearance, age, gender,
ethnicity or any other factor. 

Also, women are able to return to work sooner after having a baby or
while caring for family members. Employees with disabilities are able to
avoid the commute to the office and work in their home environment,
which is already designed for their needs. They can also fit their
physiotherapy or doctor appointments into their schedule more easily. 

Conclusion
Even when we CAN go back to our offices eventually, we should ask
ourselves whether we SHOULD. There are a lot of advantages to working
remotely that are worth considering. 
Perhaps this necessary shift towards working from home was the nudge
we needed all along to transition toward a better system. Remote
working might just stick around – and the days of the office may be
coming to an end.

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15 Remote Working Statistics You Need
to Know in 2020
Written by Sean Clark

If you torture the evidence long enough, it will confess to almost

anything – but remote working statistics in 2020 suggest that it’s here to
stay.

Call it what you like – remote work, work-from-home, teleworking,

telecommuting (definition: working from home at least some of the
time) – it’s not going away anytime soon.

Keep reading for some of the most interesting remote working statistics
of 2020:

1. Remote Work Boasts 140% Growth in 15 Years

A study done by Global Workplace Analytics found that remote workers
have grown by 140% since 2005 – about 10% per year on average. In
fact, in the last year, telecommuting statistics showed a 22% increase in
the number of participants.

This growth is shocking – especially considering that these numbers

don’t include self-employed remote workers, like entrepreneurs and
freelancers.

2. The Industrial Revolution Set the Environment up for

Destruction, but Remote Work Helps Save It 
In America, especially, the daily commute adds stress to an employee’s
life, but it also damages the environment. There’s a variety of

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telecommuting advantages and disadvantages, but here’s one of the
more exciting advantages of remote working: it saves the environment. 

Remote working statistics show that teleworking and skipping the

commute could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a staggering 54
million tons per year (along with 640 million barrels of oil).

3. Remote Employee Productivity Beats Office Productivity

Are remote workers wasting their days in front of Netflix? Remote work
statistics suggest otherwise. In fact, remote employees seem to have
excellent time management skills.

Working from home productivity statistics by Flexjobs found that 66%

of remote workers felt their productivity was improved. Stanford
confirmed this with a nine-month-long study that concluded remote
workers were 13% more productive than in-office counterparts.

4. The Gig Economy Is Exploding with Copywriters,

Graphic Designers, and Other Freelancers
Freelancing and self-employment are on the rise as more individuals
choose to be their own bosses.

 A recent survey by Buffer found that 23% of remote workers considered

themselves freelancers, and another 10% reported themselves as
business owners. One-third of remote workers have no boss, according
to remote work statistics.

5. Most Remote Workers Do Actually Work from Home

What does telecommute mean? We often call it working from home, yet
“work from home” employees can also frequent cafes and coworking
spaces, or work and travel as digital nomads.
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As it turns out – working from home statistics show that 80% of remote
workers do work from their homes, with only 7% working from
coworking spaces.

6. Remote Working Increases Work Happiness 

Workers are happier – even if it’s just one day of remote work,
according to remote working statistics found in a working from home
study by Owl Labs.

86% of these respondents felt that it reduces their stress and improved
their well-being – another plus for the positive effects of the remote
work-life balance.

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7. Almost All Remote Workers Love Flexible Work Schedules
(Not Just the Millenial) 
One of the most significant benefits of working from home for
employees is flexibility.

A Buffer survey found that 32% of remote workers consider their flexible
schedule to be the most significant benefit of working from home.
Another 26% said that the most significant benefit to them was the
flexibility to work from anywhere.

8. No Commute Reduces Workplace Stress and Improves

Work-life Balance
Think whatever you like about telecommuting disadvantages, but not
having to commute is considered a massive benefit by remote workers,
according to remote working statistics.

A study of over five and a half thousand commuters in Paris, Berlin,

Barcelona, London, and Rome found that their commute was a
significant source of stress – even more than their actual jobs.

9. It’s Not All Perfect: Virtual Team Collaboration,

Communication, and Loneliness Are Still Problems
Is loneliness one of the main disadvantages of working from home?
Many remote workers report feeling lonely, but this consistent
complaint in remote working statistics could be misleading.

For example, it’s not entirely clear if remote work causes this isolation
since there’s already an epidemic of loneliness. In fact, 20% of the UK’s
population report that they’re always or often lonely. It should come as
no surprise that remote workers feel the same way.

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Communication eases loneliness, but it can be a challenge on remote
teams. Communication issues in remote work abound. Things that work
in same-timezone offices, such as real-time chat, aren’t always as
practical for remote teams.
What does work? Appropriate use of voice and video calls (especially
with technology like Krisp that increases call quality), and effectively
using the right remote communication and collaboration tools.

10. Could You Get a Mindblowing $7,000 Raise from

Working Remotely?
Even without having one of the high-pay remote jobs, remote workers
still save money. Remote work statistics suggest that remote workers
save from $2,000 up to $7,000 per year.

It’s essentially a hidden bump in salary, thanks to reduced

transportation, food, clothing, and child-care costs.
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11. Employers Might Pay for Employee Training, but Don’t
Expect Them to Cover Other Remote Costs
If you’re working from home, will your employer cover remote-work
related costs like coworking space membership, food and drinks at
cafes, cell phone bills, and home internet bills?

Probably not. In a Buffer survey, over 70% of remote workers reported

that their companies don’t cover these costs. When costs are covered,
cell phone expenses are the most likely category.

12. Remote Workers like Working Remotely – and Want to

Continue
Despite the advantages and disadvantages of teleworking, almost all
remote workers want to continue working remotely. 

Even if it’s just part-time, a whopping 98% of remote workers want to

continue remote work throughout their careers. Would they recommend
remote working to others? 97% would.

13. Increased Remote Work Job Satisfaction Reduces

Employee Turnover
Remote work benefits the worker, but there are also benefits of
telecommuting for employers.

For example, remote work reduces employers’ employee turnover rate

by 25-50% depending on the study. Of employees who left a business,
32% said it was due to a lack of flexibility.

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This reduced turnover can save massive amounts of money when you
consider that the costs of hiring are 15-25% of an employee’s salary,
and a new employee can take from 8-26 weeks to become productive.

14. Remote Workers Cut Company Costs in Almost Every

Category
The costs of on-site employees add up for business. While increasing
revenue is one way to help the bottom line, cutting costs is another.

One sizable way to cut costs is through remote work. Estimates suggest
that each remote employee could save up to $11,000 a year, from
saving through things like electricity, property insurance, rent, office
supplies, food, and more.

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15. Not Everyone Works Remotely at (Most) Remote Work
Companies
Fully-remote companies are growing in popularity, but don’t (yet) form
the bulk of companies offering remote-work options.

A Buffer survey found that in 43% of companies, employees are split

between full-time remote work and office-based work. Second in place
are fully remote companies, forming 30% of responses. Fifteen percent
work from home as needed, while 9% have a certain number of
telecommuting days per month. 

Surprisingly, only 3% of responders were remote freelancers or solo

businesses.

In the Future, Work from Home Could Become the

Norm
Some skeptics point at a variety of reasons why remote working will die.
The news has featured high-profile cases of large companies adopting
remote work, then calling employees back into the office.

Nonetheless, remote working statistics show that it’s consistently

picking up steam and here to stay.

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Chapter 2:
How to Build a Home
Office
Working from home is a new and challenging experience,
especially when you're used to working in an office. In this
section you can find tips on how to organize your home office
and make it super productive.
Building Your Home Office from Scratch
Written by Sean Clark

If you’re working from home now, then it’s time to begin building home
office space.

Your choices range from a simple desk in the corner of your room to an
extravagant outdoor building – which should you choose?

Keep reading for some universal tips on how to set up an office for
home work.

Why Should You Build a Home Office?

Do you even need a separate home office? Maybe you’re comfortable
working from your couch. 

Although some remote workers may not have a choice (for example,
digital nomads who work and travel) there are some benefits to having
a dedicated office space.

Remote workers are known for above-average productivity. Building the

perfect home office helps you work more efficiently – giving you the
best chance of being one of these exceptional remote workers.

A Dedicated Workspace Puts You in a Productive

Mindset
One productivity benefit from a home office is the subconscious cue to
enter “work mode.” 

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It might be hard to feel like you’re “at work” when you’re on the couch
with the TV remote within arm’s length, but entering your home office
tells your mind that it’s time to get in the zone.

A Home Office Provides Boundaries Between Work

and Personal Life
A common problem when working remotely is the blurred boundaries
between work and personal life. Building a home office space can also
help stop this problem.

As simple as it is, getting up from your desk chair and walking through
your home office door gives you a clear boundary between being at
work and being at home. This separation helps prevent the burnout that
comes with feeling like you’re at work 24/7.

Plus, it can boost your professional image. If you’re on a video call –

would you prefer that your boss, clients, or colleagues see your
personal living space? Or, would you rather them see a carefully
designed home office in the background?

The Right Home Office Can Reduce Distractions

Are you working with children at home? Constant interruptions aren’t
helpful for productivity, but having your own office helps you create a
boundary when needed.

Keep all the equipment and supplies that you need on hand in your
home office to boost your productivity. Having chargers, office
supplies, printers, and other supplies at hand eliminate the risk of
venturing from your office into distractions.
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Having a Comfortable Workspace Can Save Your
Body
Long hours hunched over a laptop in bed or on the couch take their toll
on your posture and body.

However, a properly designed home office doesn’t just relieve your

discomfort – it also gives you the best environment to stay relaxed and
focused.

Saving Money: Is Building a Home Office Tax

Deductible?
There’s another reason to build a home office besides productivity:
saving money. 

Maybe you’ve asked yourself: “Can I deduct building a home office?”

The answer is often yes.
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Not only can you write off building a home office in many cases, but
you can even deduct part of your household expenses from your taxes.
Of course, check your local tax laws to ensure you’re meeting all the
requirements.

The Best Home Office Setup Ideas in 2020

There are no rules for building home office space. Maybe your ideal
home office looks like a set from an IKEA home office, or perhaps it’s a
beanbag on the porch.

No matter your preference, keep these ideas in mind.

You Don’t Have to Stay Inside – Want a Garden Office?

It’ll take a bigger budget, but if you have a yard with some space, then
it might provide the perfect setting for a gorgeous home office setup.

These outdoor offices, called “garden offices,” give you the maximum
separation between personal and business life. You could make it the
perfect home office, complete with a kitchenette and bathroom, but
converting or building a home office shed could work just as well.

Use Decorations to Brighten up Your Workday

Building your home office space has a single purpose: giving you a
space to get quality work done. 
However, that doesn’t mean you can’t add some decorations. A few
houseplants, gadgets, or pictures can cheer up an otherwise sterile
space. You want a space that puts you in a positive state – it’ll help you
get more work done. 

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These decorations can be more business-focused. For example, some
productivity experts like to surround themselves with clocks to
subconsciously reinforce the importance of our most valuable resource:
time. 

Hide Clutter While Keeping Necessities Nearby

Do you find yourself frequently heading to the kitchen for a drink, or
scouring the house for a pen or paper?

Consider adding a small refrigerator to your home office for beverages.

Building home office shelves and cabinets lets you keep everything you
need with easy reach. Plus, they give you a place to hide clutter – and
visual minimalism helps many people be more productive.
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Don’t Forget Your Lighting
Unless you love being bombarded with fluorescent light to evoke
memories of your cubicle, you’ll want to pay attention to lighting.

Sitting directly in front of a window could be distracting, but isolating

yourself in the dark may not be the best idea, either. An essential part of
productivity is proper rest, and natural light can contribute to better
sleep by maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm.

Consider putting your desk near a window to expose you to natural

light during your workday. If you need to work at night, you might want
to invest in lightbulbs that mimic the natural light spectrum.

Investing in the Right Tech Gear Pays Productivity

Dividends
For most remote workers, the majority of their work is done on a
computer. It makes sense to invest in a quality mechanical keyboard to
increase typing speed, and a comfortable mouse that reduces hand
and wrist strain.

Having a second monitor can often boost productivity by reducing the

amount of time spent flipping between open windows. Programmers,
designers, and traders especially might find even more than two
monitors useful.

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Ergonomics Are Crucial for Your Productivity (and
Wellbeing)
Wherever you choose to build your home office, ergonomics are a vital
consideration for the perfect home office. 

Poor ergonomics don’t just lead to lowered productivity from being

uncomfortable – they can lead to serious side effects down the road,
like carpal tunnel and back problems.

Here are a few home office tips for ergonomics to consider:

• Adjust the height of your desktop so that the top of your computer
screen is at eye level. This setup helps reduce eye fatigue and
neck cramps.
• Make sure your keyboard is at a height that keeps your forearms
parallel to the floor. Having your arms positioned this way
reduces the risk of crippling wrist problems after long hours of
work.
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 • Splurge on a chair – it’s worth it. An uncomfortable or noisy chair
is guaranteed to distract you from your work, along with creating
long-term physical pain.
• You don’t have to sit in a chair. Sitting for too long has harmful
health risks, but a standing desk can help mitigate these
problems.

Sounds too expensive? Remember, if you’re working remotely for a

company, they might buy you an ergonomic chair or other equipment
(especially if you have an existing injury or health requirement).

Ready to Get Started Building Your New Home

Office?
The best home office setup in 2020 will vary for each remote worker.
After all, personal preferences and jobs have different needs.
Still, whether you choose to go with a simple desk or splurge for home
office designers, keep these tips in mind when building home office
space.

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Home Office Tips: How to Have a Clean
Workspace
Written by Christian C.

It goes without saying that a well-organized clean workspace has a

tremendously positive impact on your productivity. With no mess lying
around on your desk, you also find that your mind is less cluttered as a
result.

This means that you can fully focus on the task at hand, saving you
time, getting more done, and feeling way less stressed.

That being said, getting round to cleaning up your workspace, and

maintaining a tidy, clear desk can be quite difficult – in some cases
daunting.

The key is to be consistent in your tidying, and not to let it get on top of
you before it’s too late. Your clean workspace should be treated no
differently than your kitchen table, you wouldn’t sit down to eat a meal
with pens and paper clips everywhere, would you?

So, without further ado, to help you stop it ever getting to that stage,
here are some tips on how to maintain a clean workspace and
generally keep things organized within your workspace.

Start with a bang 

The first thing you need to do is declutter your workspace. Get rid of
every bit of waste paper, pen lid with no pen, broken pens – you get the

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idea. If necessary, you can even take this chance to get rid of any
broken or worn-out office furniture you might have. 

Try to imagine the perfect clean workspace, somewhere you would

dream of sitting down to work at. Once you know what you are trying
to achieve, you will start to feel much more relaxed about the process,
trust us!

Label and order things properly

What better opportunity to get all of your physical paperwork in order?
It can be a daunting and time-consuming task, but you will feel much
freer in the mind once this is done.

The key is to ensure that things don’t get out of hand again, and the
best way to prevent that is to color code, and label things. If you take
something out of a file or a drawer, make sure you put it back in its
place afterward!
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This part of the workstation trying up process helps you get your things
back in their places and heavily reduces the risk of losing important
documents. If you have extra time to spare, why not consider scanning
some of your physical documents? This will also create more space,
and is another easy way of decluttering your workspace.

Get some proper storage solutions

Storage boxes for your papers and files are a must if you want to keep
your clean workspace.

Even getting yourself a small pen and pencils holder for your desk is a
smart way of ensuring that you don’t end up with things strewn across
your workspace – it also means that you should never be confused as
to where your stationery and other necessary office supplies are,
whenever you need to use them.

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Keep your computer’s desktop tidy
So far, we have only discussed keeping the physical elements of your
desk tidy. Having a well-organized workspace also means keeping the
digital side of things tidy as well.

You need to set some time aside to purge files from your desktop,
arrange them into folders and subfolders – generally keep everything
on your computer just as tidy as you are now doing with your actual
desk.

Digital sticky notes and calendars are your friends here as well, there
really is no excuse not to have everything in order – after all, your daily
work is done on your computer, and there is no point tearing your hair
out because you can’t find important documents on your hard drive.

This is something that you have to maintain, and to do so, you need to
give your computer a once over at least once every two weeks. Once
you get into the swing of things, you’ll never look back – your brain will
certainly thank you for it! This is probably the easiest of all changes,
and can have a huge impact on your daily productivity levels.

Sort out your email inbox

Having a tidy desktop is one thing, but you also need to think about
sorting out your emails. Lots of handy information can be easily buried
in the mire if you don’t.

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As with all the pointers in this article, doing these little things are the
steps that bring you the biggest gains. When everything is properly
organized, you can focus your mind on getting as much work done as
possible, with few distractions.

Don’t let yourself slack off!

As with any new habit, the office workstation organization takes a lot of
practice and dedication. Before you actually sit down to work or knock
off for the day, take a few minutes to tidy up your workspace and put
your things back where they live. It’s probably best to do this at the end
of each day, so that you have a shiny, tidy spot to work when you
come to sit down the next day. 

Having your workstation in tip-top shape before you start work will do
wonders for your mood, so what better way to start the working day
than to give yourself a pat on the back for keeping up with your tidying
up? All that can possibly lie ahead is a fully productive day!
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To round up…
As you can see from the advice given above, it’s clear that maintaining
a tidy desk and a professional workstation is key to keeping your
productivity levels high. Once you master the art of keeping a clean
desk, you won’t look back – even imagining working in an untidy spot
will be enough to turn your stomach.

If you still find yourself struggling, an easy way to stay on top of things
is to put up little notes around your now tidy workstation which remind
you of how well you are doing in keeping everything organized. Maybe
even a photo of what your desk looks like when it really is tidy!

Hopefully, once you have got to grips with organizing your workstation,
you will see other changes in the way that you generally organize your
work and personal life – the benefits to keeping things neat and tidy far
outweigh any negatives! So, what are you waiting for, get started and
make use of our desk tidying ideas!

34
 ,.,

Chapter 3:
How to Stay Productive
While Working from Home
If you're worried about your working from home productivity,
these articles will give you strategies to be sure you're getting
things done. You can use them to organize your work and
stay productive while you’re at home.
How To Be Productive Working From
Home In 7 Steps
Written by Alexandra Cote

When talking about the effects working from home has on employees’
productivity, the first bet someone would have is to assume that remote
employees are less productive. False.

Remote work is actually increasing people’s productivity at work and

performance. On average, remote workers spend 1.4 more days on
productive activities than in-office employees.

We all struggle to keep a balance between work and the rest of our lives
sometimes. And recently turned remote workers have it harder.

With the unforeseen changes going on in the workspace, few

companies got enough time to prepare their resources and strengthen
their mentality. As a consequence, most employees are facing the
hurdles of remote work alone. From their homes, their basement office,
or kitchen table. 

To take this responsibility off of you, I’ve put together this brief guide
with the only (but oh so essential!) 7 tips on how to be productive
working from home.

Create a schedule and stick to it

The number one remote work tip I always recommend first if you want
to step up your productivity game is to have a set schedule. Just like
you would for an on-site job. This might seem like an easy thing to

36
achieve, but once you’re faced with so much time to manage on your
own, things get tricky.

Many fully-distributed companies have a specific schedule similar to

your classic 9-to-5. Or, at least a time zone you need to be working on
so you’re available for meetings and important updates you have to
make. If you’ve got a bit more control over how you spend your
workday, though, you need to manage every single second on your
own.

Without a fixed timetable to follow in detail, you’ll find yourself

postponing work for several days until it’s too late for you to reach a
deadline on time. Luckily, you probably already know when your most
productive hours of a day are.

37
You might feel like you’re at your top creativity level in the morning and
not able to put in any analytical work after noon. Or you could be a
night owl who’d rather do all work in the evening towards midnight. 

Every single person is different in this sense. I, for instance, prefer to

just take care of all work and finish early. Other people take a break
every single hour.

Not sure what works best for you? Test different time-tracking methods
for 2-3 weeks. Note down your performance during each day to choose
the schedule pattern when you’re the most efficient.

Take breaks – It’s as simple as that!

Whatever your mind’s rhythm dictates, remember to schedule breaks
evenly too. One option would be to divide your time into chunks of 2
hours dedicated solely to work, each chunk followed by a 1-hour break.
If your company allows it, you can even go all in and take whole days
off, working just 4 days/week instead.

38
You can even take time off when you don’t feel like you need it to
unwind and not end up burning out. The end result of your work will
also have to suffer. Nobody wants to find themselves having to re-do
work indefinitely just because they wanted to finish a task faster.

Without noticing it, breaks clear our mind, keep us focused, and boost
our creativity. That’s why some of our best ideas come to us in the
morning or after longer periods of chill time or meditation.

The catch here is not to fall behind with work because you’ve decided
to spend 3 days watching your favorite TV show. Consistent prolonged
periods of inactivity at work will make you subconsciously get used to
this way of spending time and think you can get away with not doing
much at work. But as always, bad time management = bad results.

39
Learn to prioritize your time
This is the kind of tip on how to be more productive while working from
home that would make some people roll their eyes. 

“Of course, I know how to prioritize my tasks.” 🙄

The truth is that few of us actually know how to get our activities in
order and feel like we have enough time to do it all. Reddit is full of
threads like:

“I don’t know how to prioritize my time.”

“How do you know what tasks to prioritize?”
“Which of my tasks should I prioritize?”

People are just desperate to get their activities organized. We’ve run
over a couple of the best time and task prioritization techniques before
like the 80/20 principle or the rule of 3.

If you’re short on time though, here’s the single best thing you can try
first:

Start with the tasks you hate. 

Leave admin tasks for later in the afternoon when you’re too tired to
stay creative and alert. Don’t focus all your attention on meaningless
tasks that don’t add up to your main goals. This will leave you with no
energy or willingness to focus on the ones that truly matter.

To boost your productivity, just try this once and stick to it for a couple
of days. Trust me, I hate this method, it’s hard to keep it up, but it works
better than any other and it takes no time to implement.
40
Stay professional during video calls
You’d be surprised by how many distractions can come up during a
single meeting. I can’t tell you enough about how much time is lost in
meetings as team members discuss each other’s settings.

Video calling tools like Zoom have understood this problem and now
provide an option for you to add in any image you want to the
background. Just like a green screen so you won’t have to worry about
your dogs playing in the background or a pile of clothes you didn’t get
to put away.

The second biggest distraction that can completely ruin a conversation

is any background noise. Not understanding or hearing your colleagues
properly will only cause frustration, delays, and even canceled
meetings.

A noise-canceling app like Krisp removes all background sounds and

even allows you to mute the background noise for other call
participants. So you don’t have to ask someone to repeat the same
question twice or explain something again. 😉 This is also a good
option for teachers, podcasters, or online instructors like me who are
looking to deliver high-quality audio to listeners.

Keep an organized workspace

For some people, a cluttered desk just makes them grumpy.

Certain people prefer a minimalist workspace with a laptop and a

mouse, others want a bunch of notes, candles, and photos of their
loved ones. In both cases, though, it’s not exactly the clutter that

41
stresses us out. It’s the feeling of not having everything in the right
place.

You can find order in your chaos. So clutter is really what you define it.
Here are a couple of general hands-on tips to keep your physical AND
digital workspace clean:
• Don’t move your documents from one file to another once you’ve
put everything in a clearly defined order
• Refrain from buying small knick-knacks you won’t be using like
figurines, fake flowers, or other sparkly deco
• For all of you desktop users [guilty too 🖐 ], divide your screen into
2-3 sections according to their purpose so you’ll know where to
look for that important folder
• Go through your docs and images regularly and delete or archive
the ones you won’t be using in the next month [or year if you’re
daring]
• Remove distractions: even your phone 🤯
• All in all, keep your desk as empty as possible so it will also be easy
for you to clean up without moving pounds of folders

Create strong boundaries between your work and

personal life
This is currently the top issue people who work from home have and,
frankly, there will always be times when you’ll have to maintain this
balance. If you’ve been working from home for as little as 2 weeks you
might have already noticed 2 key problems that bug all of us:
• Your family thinks you’re always available to go shopping or have
a 2-hour chat
• You find yourself working overtime without realizing it

42
For the first point, the solution is fairly easy: 

Get yourself a dedicated workspace in the house 

People have gone as far as to use their basement but, hey, whatever
works for you. 💪 Add a note to your “office”’s door to let your kids
know when you’re in meetings and when they can reach out to you.
If you regularly work more than you would at the office, well, that’s
normal and the solutions are definite but temporary. One of the
reasons remote employees are more productive is because they don’t
have the distractions of an office where a meeting can be called every
hour or someone stops you for a chit-chat. At home, you’re alone with
the laptop. Provided you get rid of potential time wasters, you’ll find
yourself getting caught up with work and losing track of time
occasionally.

Beyond this, the mere fact that you’re working from the same place you
spend the rest of the day confuses your mind. This ultimately makes
you think it’s ok to check another email or write some more code. Even
call up a one-on-one meeting 3 hours after work is officially done. 

Free up space in your mind too

Getting rid of your work-related worries and ideas when you’re just
cooking dinner or talking to your family is never going to happen. 
The human mind is a very free space. So it’s difficult to control it. 
Instead, for remote work productivity, you need to eliminate physical
work cues that will entice you to do 2 more hours of desk work:
• Put your laptop away

43
 • Close your work-related tabs [I do this and it does wonders to my
sanity]
• Turn off email notifications after 5pm
• Or just lock up all work in the office

Become a master digital app user

Some days you just won’t feel like putting in any work or you might
notice you’re slower than usual. No worries, though. All of us feel this
way at some point.

The solution to staying productive while working from home?

Turn to digital tools to do part of your work. They are literally the robots
of the present who will save you hours of work. 🤖 Every single day. 

I, for example, use speech to text apps to dictate my articles whenever I

feel distracted by other issues. This helps me finish my work in half the
usual time because I don’t spend time editing every single sentence as I
write it and lose my ideas along the way.

The biggest advantage to using digital solutions as your little helpers

for how to be productive while working from home? They remove the
stress of administrative work so you can focus your full attention on the
tasks that require your creativity and skills.

People who are just starting to work from home are also noticing the
power of video chat software. They’re testing multiple ones to see the
fastest options where they won’t have any interruptions. Or they just go
for a collaboration or project management app with a video calling
feature. Slack has this video option too btw.
44
Check out our complete list of tools that can help you become more
productive while working from home.

Key Takeaways On How To Be More Productive

While Working From Home
Stop worrying about how you’re not at your top work productivity
levels. It’s ok to take breaks as long as you stick to your plans and avoid
postponing them. 

Here’s a checklist with all things you need to plan in order to be more
productive while working from your own home:
• Maintain a schedule and follow it rigorously
• Incorporate regular breaks into your schedule
• Prioritize your tasks and implicitly, your time
• Stay professional during calls
• Re-organize your desk
• Set boundaries between work and the rest of your day
• Turn to digital tools when a task becomes a burden

45
How to Create a Work From Home
Schedule That Works for You
Written by Amy Rigby

Ah, working from home: the dream, right? Well, not always. If
circumstances are forcing you to telecommute for the first time or
you’re unaccustomed to working in a new environment, it can be a
tough transition. Without a boss nearby, a dedicated workspace, or the
imposed structure of an office, telecommuting can leave you feeling
unmoored. Throw in a barking dog or screaming kids (or both!), and it
can really wreck your productivity.

That’s why it’s crucial to create a work from home schedule. Rather than
viewing a schedule as restrictive, see it for what it is: a tool that builds
structure into your day and enables you to do your best work.

I’ve been working remotely since 2013, and below, I’ll share the best tips
I’ve learned on how to create a work from home schedule that works for
you.

Know Your (and Your Company’s) Goals

Before you create a work from home schedule, identify what the goals
are. Is there a certain number of hours you need to clock in each day?
Does your company require you to be online at set times? Or are you
simply trying to complete a set number of projects each month? 

Since I’m a freelance writer, my schedule revolves around completing

my assigned articles by their deadlines. Rather than plan my schedule
around working a certain number of hours or at specific times of day, I

46
plan it around monthly revenue goals. That helps me break down how
many article assignments I need to receive per month and how many I
need to complete per week.
So sit down and write out your goals and your company’s expectations.
This will help you craft a work from home schedule that will please both
you and your boss.

Create a Morning Ritual

We are creatures of habit, and having a ritual that we look forward to
each morning can provide us with a sense of stability that we often lack
when we work from home. In fact, research shows that routines help fill
our lives with meaning, which boosts our well-being.

Routines are especially important during times of crisis. When the world
around us feels scary and unpredictable, we take comfort in the
predictability of our routines, the things we can control.

47
Your morning ritual doesn’t need to be extravagant. Mine consists of
getting out of bed without reaching for my phone (I often fail at this
part), drinking a glass of water, praying, and then writing my to-do list
for the day.

Even when you’re working from home, there’s scientific evidence that
getting dressed as though you’re going into the office can be a good
thing to keep in your morning routine. One Northwestern University
study found that the simple act of wearing a lab coat improved
selective and sustained attention on tasks. Researchers concluded that
“clothes can have profound and systematic psychological and
behavioral consequences for their wearers.”

Align Your Schedule With Your Peak Energy Times

You’ve probably heard of the circadian rhythm, the body’s internal
clock, but did you know that within that circadian rhythm, there’s a
unique variation known as chronotypes?

That means the old “morning lark” and “night owl” types hold true.
Some of us are more alert during the morning, while others reach peak
alertness at night.

If you can, create a work from home schedule that aligns with your
peak energy times. For example, if you’re a lark, tackle the most
energy-consuming, complicated tasks in the morning. But if you’re a
night owl, save those tasks for the evening.

48
But how can you tell if you’re an early bird or a night owl? My next tip
for creating your work from home schedule will help you understand
which times of day you’re most alert.

Track Your Time

Even though I don’t bill by the hour, I use the app Toggl to track my time
because it helps me in three ways:
• I get a better idea of how long certain tasks take me, which helps
me plan my days ahead of time.
• By looking at the reports at the end of each week or month, I can
tell which times of day and which days of the week I’m most alert
and productive.
• Using the timer helps me to train myself to work in longer, more
productive spurts. I try to adhere to the Pomodoro Technique,
where I work 25 minutes straight before taking a break. This helps
me to maintain focus.

Keep track of how you spend your time during the day, and you’ll be
amazed at what lessons you can glean about your productivity and
how to structure your schedule.

49
Make a To-Do List Using the ALPEN Method
Everyone’s familiar with the standard to-do list, which is typically just a
brain dump of all the tasks you need to complete that day. But if you
really want to power up your productivity, try incorporating elements
of the ALPEN method. Developed by German time management expert
Lothar J. Seiwert, it’s a way of planning your day more strategically.

Each letter of “ALPEN” represents a step in German, but below is the

gist of it in English:
• Make a to-do list.
• Estimate how long each task will take.
• Plan “buffer time.” This is the time that goes toward taking breaks
and dealing with distractions. The ALPEN method recommends
planning for 60% productivity time (where you work on the tasks

50
 listed) and 40% buffer time (where you take breaks and get
distracted).
• Rank items in order of highest to lowest priority.
• Cross items off your list, starting from the top.

For me, the most helpful part of the ALPEN method is that you plan for
distractions. One of the reasons my work from home schedule never
seemed to go smoothly was that I was expecting more productivity time
than was feasible. Whether you work from home or in an office,
distractions are bound to pop up; if you anticipate them, they’re less
likely to ruin your day.

Set Office Hours

A friend wouldn’t show up to your workplace and barge into your office
in the middle of the day, but it’s different when you work from home.
Outsiders might not understand that just because you’re at your
apartment doesn’t mean you’re lazing around.

Because of this, it’s important to set boundaries by communicating

your office hours to everyone you live with, as well as your friends and
family outside the home. That should help to cut down on annoying
texts such as, “Hey, since you’re home anyway, could you pick up
Fluffy for me from the groomers?”

Communicating your office hours to others also means respecting them

yourself. That means cutting out anything that distracts you from work
during that time, such as your cell phone. I recommend putting it on
silent and out of reach.

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Despite all of this, there are some things you just can’t put on silence
(like when your roommate decides to turn on the blender while you’re
on a conference call). If background noise plagues your business calls,
install Krisp for free. With its two-way noise canceling, Krisp lets you
speak without the call participants hearing your background noise and
lets you listen without hearing other people’s background noise.

Know the Difference Between a Schedule and a

Routine
Some people thrive when placed on a schedule, which dictates what
they will be doing and at what time. Others, however, do best when they
follow a routine, which means they do regular tasks in a sequence but
not on a strict timeline. 

For example, I don’t have a set bedtime or waking time. I begin my

workday whenever I get up, which is whenever I feel rested. Then, I
begin my morning ritual, no matter what time it is. And if I’m feeling
particularly sluggish during my workday, I give myself more frequent
breaks. As long as I turn in my articles by their deadlines, it doesn’t
matter when I do the work. This is what suits me best, but it may not
work for you.

52
How do you know if you’re a schedule or a routine person? Experiment!
Give both a try for a week and see which one energizes you the most
and helps you do your best work.

Have an “Anchor Activity” for Your Day

While my work schedule is pretty flexible, there is one thing I make sure
never to miss: doing at least 30 minutes of cardio in the late afternoon. I
like to think of this as my “anchor activity.”

Just like a literal anchor prevents ships from floating away at sea, an
anchor activity prevents you from drifting off course during your
workday. My daily cardio gets my heart pumping, helping me to fight
the afternoon slump and return to my work with renewed vigor.

And I make sure that, no matter how busy or unproductive my day has
been, I always do my anchor activity. Why? Because even when I feel

53
like I’ve gotten nothing done all day, sticking to my anchor activity
helps me to feel a sense of accomplishment. It grounds me when I feel
like I’ve gone off track.

Some other ideas for anchor activities:

• Virtual team check-in
• Meditation or prayer
• Going for a walk
• Practicing a language
• Journaling
The point here is to have a single activity in the mid-point of your day
that you never skip that serves to ground you in a sense of purpose or
reinvigorate you so you can continue your work.

What’s Your Ideal Work From Home Schedule?

There is no one-size-fits-all work from home schedule. What suits you
best will depend on your personality, needs, and job role. Using these
guidelines, you’ll have a better shot at crafting your own schedule. And
remember, you can always experiment and tweak from there.
When you’re working from the comfort (or chaos) of your home, having
a routine and a schedule can save your sanity and boost your
productivity. But creating a schedule is just one piece of the puzzle. If
you really want to do your best work outside of the office, keep reading.

54
How to Work From Home With Kids and
Stay Productive
Written by Kelly Dunning

COVID-19 has put many parents in the difficult position of trying to

figure out how to work from home with kids – without going completely
crazy. 

Due to school closures and social distancing, everyone is cooped up in

the house together – and many are finding it incredibly challenging to
get work done. 

If you’re in this situation you might be feeling frustrated and

overwhelmed trying to balance childcare, work and everything else on
your plate. It’s time to stop, take a deep breath and make a plan. 
Although it is difficult to be productive when you are working from
home with kids, there are practical steps you can take. It IS possible to
work from home with kids and stay productive! 

The trick is to be proactive and take control. Here are some tips that will
help: 

Things You Can Do Yourself

First, let’s look at the things that YOU can do to squeeze more time out
of the day – and make yourself more efficient in that precious time. 

Focus On The Big Picture

Do your best to focus on weekly goals rather than daily goals, as the
day can be unpredictable. On some days, your kids will play together

55
quietly, you’ll get lots done and you’ll feel focused and relaxed. On
other days, you’ll find yourself mediating sibling fights, mending
scraped knees and pleading with your little ones to stop using the pots
and pans as a drum set. 

Looking at the week as a whole, rather than measuring your progress

daily, will help you feel less stressed out about the odd unproductive
day. If the kids are restless, you can take a break and play outside
without feeling pressure. You’ll make up for it on other days, so just trust
that everything will even out in the end. 

Have a Clearly Defined Office Space

Work in a room where you can close the door and let your kids know
not to interrupt you. It can be a dedicated home office, or simply a
spare bedroom with a desk in it. The most important thing is having a
lock on the door. 

If your children are old enough to play unsupervised, let them know
that they should only knock on your office door if there is an
emergency. (An emergency more serious than wanting a cookie, or a
turn with the TV remote.)

56
How you set up your home office really makes a difference as well.
Working on a bed or a comfy chair is a big mistake. There’s a risk of
work time accidently turning into nap time. A desk or a table where you
can sit upright will help you focus and avoid back and neck pain. 

Also, get yourself a pair of headphones that will help you tune out noise
during work calls. The Krisp app is incredibly helpful for parents
working at home, as it uses AI technology to cancel out background
noise. Even if your kids are watching Frozen for the 5,694th time and
singing along – no one on your conference call will hear a thing. 

Work In Small Bursts

Divide your work up into small tasks that can be done while the children
watch a TV show, or take a nap. You might not be able to work on a
large project for three hours interrupted, but you’ll be able to get
chunks of work done throughout the day.

57
Small tasks don’t seem like much at the time, but they will move you
forward. A great way to take advantage of small periods of time is to
use the Pomodoro Technique. Developed by Francesco Cirillo in the
1980s, this time management method has been shown to improve focus.
It requires you to decide on a task, set a timer for 25 minutes, then work
only on that task for the designated time.  

Working on one task at a time in such a focused way will make you
more accountable, and minimizes the time you spend procrastinating.
Many people find that a task that might have taken them an hour when
unfocused, can be completed within a 25 minute “Pomodoro” session. 

Look for Time-Saving Measures in Your Work

Since you have less time than usual to work, this is the time to employ
any possible productivity measures that will save time. 

Here are some useful apps for making your workflow more streamlined:
• Text Expander: If you find yourself writing the same thing
regularly, use this app to quickly insert “snippets” with a simple
keyboard shortcut. 
• IFTTT: Use “If This, Then That” to connect all your tools together and
make them work harmoniously. For example, you can set it so that
if you star an email in Gmail, a task on your to-do list is
automatically created.  
• Evernote: An incredibly useful app that can be synced across all
your devices, Evernote makes it possible to jot down ideas on your
phone while watching your kids play – then access them in an
instant when you’re back at your computer.

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 • Buffer: If you use social media in any capacity in your work, Buffer
can be a life-saver. It allows you to quickly schedule out content
over all your media channels in advance – so you can forget about
it for the rest of the week. 

Looking for more? Check out these productivity-boosting apps.

Get Active! 
Keeping your kids cooped up inside will make them more restless. Soon
enough, you’ll have wild children climbing the walls and becoming
increasingly loud and disruptive.

Instead, get outside in the backyard and run around. Play very
physically demanding games, such as tag, team sports or relay races.

59
The key is to make them them all tuckered out so they will be calmer for
the rest of the day. You might even find that they fall asleep earlier – so
you have more time to work. 

Get Up Early Or Work Late

Make the most of the time when your kids are asleep. If you have older
children who tend to sleep in, get up before them and squeeze in some
work in the morning. If you have young children who go to bed early,
your prime work time can be in the evening. 

And of course, there’s always nap time. If you’ve used the strategy in
the last point and your kids have been playing energetic games all
morning, they might be ready for a nap in the afternoon. 

Things Others Can Help You With

You don’t have to struggle through this alone! There are many ways
others may be able to help you achieve your work goals. Here are a few
things others can help you with. 

Encourage Older Kids to Entertain Younger Ones

If you have children old enough, let them teach or lead their younger
siblings. They can teach their younger siblings a skill, lead them in a
game or read them a story. 

This is a great way to keep everyone occupied – and it also teaches

your older kids responsibility and how to care for others. You might
even find that the together-time strengthens the bond between siblings
as well. 

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Let Them Video-Call Family Members and Friends
Your child can call an aunt, uncle, grandma or grandpa on the phone
and video chat with them for a while. They can read stories, play
games, talk, sing, dance and much more. While they are occupied with
the conversation, you can get some work done. It’s almost like having a
virtual babysitter! 

By doing this, you’ll also be ensuring that your children stay connected
to the other important people in their lives. Staying connected with
family is more important now than ever. 

Swap In and Out With Your Spouse 

If you have a partner who can help with the childcare – things will be a
lot easier. You may find that the most productive strategy is to alternate
your workday schedule. Take turns working and taking care of the kids,
allowing each adult time to concentrate solely on work.

61
If you or your partner has work that needs to be done without
interruption, the other can take the kids outside to play or on a walk.
This type of teamwork can be essential for figuring out how to work
from home with kids. 

Above All, Set Reasonable Expectations

The truth is that you won’t get as much done as usual. This is a very
strange situation, so don’t be too hard on yourself and don’t feel guilty.
Set reasonable expectations with your employer so they are aware that
your work calls may be interrupted – or you may need longer
deadlines. 

If you are a freelancer and you set your own deadlines, this is a great
opportunity to use the strategy of “under promise and over deliver.” In
other words, if you think you might be able to complete something by
Wednesday, tell your client Friday instead. You’ll have the extra time if
you need it, and if you get it done by Thursday you’re ahead of
schedule rather than being late! 

Also, this is a time to cut yourself some slack when it comes to

parenting. It’s a worldwide pandemic, after all. Don’t let it stress you out
that your kids are getting more screen time than usual – it might be
necessary for getting through the day. Letting them have a few more
special indulgences doesn’t mean you’re a terrible parent. It means
you’re doing what you need to do to get through these difficult times. 

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4 Timeless Productivity Principles for
Remote Workers
Written by Aditya Sheth

Most probably, your day now starts with a short commute from your
bed to your desk, answering emails and planning the rest of the day. 

But it’s hard to get things done when your phone’s constantly buzzing
with alerts, you spend the day working on multiple things (without
making progress on any one thing) and sometimes forget just how
noisy your home can get.

In this post, you’re going to learn 4 principles on how to be more

productive as a remote worker in 2020. And no, this doesn’t include
working longer hours.

After pouring months into productivity books, devouring productivity

podcasts, and experimenting with a myriad of productivity hacks in the
last 5 years, these 4 timeless productivity principles work for me, even
today.

Let’s not waste time, shall we?

1. Visualize Your Ideal Day

I’m going to let you in on a productivity and time management secret
that I should have used much, much earlier: if it’s not on my calendar,
it doesn’t get done. No exceptions.

And this even includes meeting friends, chatting with my parents or

even something as trivial as doing my laundry.
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I’ve never been a calendar fanatic, but recently I started scheduling my
days in advance since I started managing multiple projects in tandem
and also realizing that adding to-dos to my calendar also helps
preserve my sanity.

Scheduling your tasks in your calendar has a psychological effect:

you’re less likely to let somebody else’s priorities or your own
procrastination affect your productivity. 

My color-coding strategy isn’t about me being cute. Blue events are all
things Venngage, the red events are my personal/non-work tasks.

Ever since I’ve defaulted to using Google Calendar, I’ve found it easier
to stick to my schedule without exerting much willpower.

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If you’re not a fan of calendars and how clunky they can get, you don’t
need to use them. A timeline maker can help you achieve the same
thing minus the clutter:

While this will not replace your calendar and it’s robust functionality,
visualizing your day using a timeline will still help you plan your ideal
day and make sticking to it that much easier, especially when you’re
working remotely. 

2. Getting In Your Flow

The invention of the internet, email, social networks, slack, etc. has
allowed us access to the world, its information and allowed us to work
from anywhere in the world. 

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Unfortunately, this has also given the world access to us. Misusing
these tools can prevent us from getting into a flow state.

To get in your flow, when working from home (or remotely), it’s
important to identify internal and external interruptions and deal with
them appropriately — especially because time without focused
attention is meaningless. 

Which is why over the last year, I’ve spent a lot of time reducing my
reliance on always being connected, limited my outbound
communication and identified tools to help me get more done.

a. Become Harder to Reach

If you take away anything from this post at all, optimizing how you use
your smartphone could perhaps be the best productivity principle you
could apply in your life right now. 

Or for lack of a better phrase, “get a distraction-free phone.”

There are tons of posts on how to limit your smartphone usage but let
me share a couple of neat tricks I’ve personally employed: 
• Turn off notifications for all apps (except transit, ride-hailing or
maps apps)
• Organize apps into folders to make accessing them easier
• Delete any apps you haven’t used since last week
• Use social media on your browser, instead of their apps

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Here is what my smartphone looks like. Three things to note: 
• Only 1 row of apps; less is more.
• Similar apps neatly organized in folders.
• All notifications turned off.

Smartphones and apps are engineered to be addictive, and the onus is

on you to use your  smartphone as a tool and prevent collaboration
overload from distracting you from your work. 

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The point I’m stressing on is this: people, sports scores and your
colleagues can wait. But work doesn’t.

Possessing a smartphone doesn’t make it okay for anybody else to

expect a response from you within the same minute or even the same
day. 

If it helps, you can find some solace in the fact that almost nothing is
ever that urgent. 

Becoming harder to reach allows the world limited access to you and,
by extension, allows you to go really deep in whatever it is you’re trying
to do, be it working on a client proposal or exploring the next city on
your nomadic journey.

b. No Emails In The Morning

If you’re sending emails first thing in the morning, you should probably
rethink how you spend that time. Let me explain.

The first few hours of waking up is the time when you’re at the peak of
your powers. Which is why using these hours to answer some emails is
probably the worst use of your time. 

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I’ve been guilty of this in the past (I’m still susceptible to emailing first
thing), but when you’re at your most mentally alert, use this time to
make progress on your most important tasks. 

And yes, reading email newsletters and answering personal emails

takes up a lot of attention. Attention that could be better spent
elsewhere.

The takeaway? Set a clear agenda, identify the most important task
you need to work on, and work on it first thing in the morning. 

If you glanced at my calendar above, writing this post for Krisp is my

most important task for this week, which is why I’ve scheduled it first
thing every morning.

c. Use Productivity Tools To Your Advantage

You can be the hardest worker in the room. But someone with access to
the right tools will still manage to get more done than you do.

Which is why I’m bullish on productivity tools. The right combination of

these tools will comprise what is called a “productivity stack.” 

So here are some software-based tools in my productivity stack: 

• Superhuman for email
• Google Calendar for managing my day-to-day
• Trello for project management
• Krisp for crystal-clear conference calls
• AnyDo for jotting down to-dos and ideas

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 • Paperform to schedule appointments

I use Superhuman for email. It’s expensive, but I’ve been able to hit
inbox zero every single day with some of its features like: reminders,
scheduled messages, split-inboxes, etc. 

And with the nature of my job, I spend ~20% of my week in email, so it’s
important to have the right tool to make sending emails snappier.

This investment has granted me an additional 2-3 hours every week.

Time I can spend doing more high impact things at work, hitting the
gym or even enjoying life outside work.

When it comes to my hardware tools, I keep it fairly simple: 

• Macbook Air 2019. 
• Beats Studio 3 ANC headphones.

A great laptop that doesn’t slow down is something you should

definitely invest in. Even a Windows laptop works as long as it has
powerful specs for the kind of work you do.

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 A clear inbox = A clear mind.
And if you love working from cafes and want something to drown out
the background noise, don’t forget to get yourself a pair of noise
cancelling headphones to make it that much easier for you to get in the
zone. 

If your goal is to get the best results (and not the cheapest results),
spend the money and initial setup time to pick your productivity stack
and then stick to it.

3. The Rule of 3
While the Rule of 3 is better known as a writing framework, it works well
even in the realm of productivity. 

As a productivity principle, you can use the rule of 3 to establish the 3

most important tasks you want to get done on any given day.

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At the start of every day (or after work the day before), choose 3 key
things you wish to accomplish. These are the most important tasks you
need to get done every day. Everything else comes second.

To really take this principle further, you have to first identify what’s
worth doing, what’s not, and how to be effective at working on your
important tasks.

a. Do The Hardest Task First

After you identify your 3 most important tasks for each day, the next
step is picking the most important task of them all. And then doing this
task first thing in the morning. 

Or for lack of a better term, “eat that frog.”

Source: Monday.com

As I quipped above, if you can get this task done before you check your
emails or engage in social media banter, you probably can call it a day
well spent (even if you do nothing else that day).

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For me, writing is something I need a lot of energy for, a sharp mind and
a huge chunk of time. And I have all 3 between the hours of 8 a.m. – 12
p.m.

This is when I do the bulk of my writing.

Setting agendas is hard, even more so for remote workers. But if you
can identify your most important task and do it first thing in the AM,
you can drastically enhance your output and build the momentum that
will carry you through the rest of the day. 

b. Build a Not-To-Do List

Don’t get me wrong, to-do lists are great, and I still use them to quickly
jot down tasks and ideas. 

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But to-do lists often end up being a laundry list of stuff other people
want you to do mixed with some of your own tasks (if you’re lucky.)
To separate the “should dos” from the “could dos,” making a not-to-do
list is something you should do on a regular basis. 

To really identify what’s important to you, identifying what’s not

important is useful as a process of elimination to determine whether
you’re doing what you want or what others want you to do. 

Source: the1thing.com
This way, the focus is on what needs to get done while you can
delegate or even ignore stuff that’s either not urgent or important.

c. Say No To Multitasking
“If you chase 2 rabbits, you will not catch either one.” — Russian
Proverb

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 Source: jamesclear.com
Remote workers are especially susceptible to multi-tasking due to a lack
of goal setting, operating with little to no structure and a plethora of
distractions.

But you already know what I’m going to say: Multi-tasking is frankly
overrated. 

When you continually switch between tasks, your work takes ~50%
longer to complete, compared with doing one task from start to finish
and could lower your productivity by as much as 40%.

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When we fail to focus on only “one” thing at a time, we instead focus
on only the “highlights” of what we’re doing and later forget how we
spent our time in the first place.

Source: the1thing.com
So if you want to achieve peak levels of productivity, start approaching
your work with a “one step” at a time mindset.

A good rule to keep in mind is to stick to the rule of 3. Pick 3 important

tasks you want to get done and work on them individually from start to
finish. 

4. 80/20 Everything
The 80/20 principle is a framework I regularly apply both at work and
outside it. 

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In simple terms, the 80/20 principle is all about identifying 20% of the
actions that drive 80% of the results. Think about it. Why work harder
when you can get the same results (if not better) by doing less? 

Identifying tasks that help you achieve 80% of your goals is another
great productivity principle to help you prioritize the work you do.

a. Less is More
Going back to my comment about inbox zero, having a clear desktop is
going to help you achieve mental clarity and massive gains in your
overall productivity. 

And, here’s how I apply it specifically to my remote work productivity:

At any time, I have only 1-2 working files on my desktop, which I will
eventually move to Google Drive after I’m done with the project. This
way, I’m able to multiple projects with relative ease.

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I also have no files on my laptop (barring important documents), while I
move tasks on my to Trello after I process them (you can use a tool like
ClickUp to have your to-dos and tasks all in one place, if that’s better.)
The same thing applies to the dock.

Trello, Superhuman and Safari are really all I need day-to-day. The rest
isn’t something I use daily, so they don’t get a cut off from the dock. 

The result? A clean laptop that isn’t mentally taxing to look at and
allows me to focus only on what matters most. This prevents
information overload, which can stifle clear thought. 

Digital minimalism is your secret weapon when it comes to producing

consistently, especially when working remotely.

b. Do Regular Life Audits

I’ve started conducting regular life audits since early 2019. This comes
as a precaution to my incessant habit of eating more than I can chew
(or my FOMO), as well as my inability sometimes just saying no.

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Auditing your life every 3-6 months to identify where you’re spending
your time, whether it aligns with your goals, both personal and
professional, is an exercise I highly recommend you carry out.

I spend ~1-2 hours every 3 months reviewing what I did, whether I’m on
track to hitting my goals or if I need to cut down on any commitments
that are irrelevant to my goals or personal productivity.

A good framework to help you better evaluate your commitments is

what Derek Sivers calls “HELL YEAH! Or “no.”If anything is not a “HELL
YEAH!” it’s most definitely a “no.”

Is your calendar filled with a majority of “HELL YEAH!” or a bunch of

“no-nos”? Auditing your life is the only way to find out. 

Bringing It All Together

Remote work is no doubt the future of work, granting you the flexibility
of working from wherever and at the time of your choice. But with all
that extra flexibility, oftentimes work doesn’t get done. 

And as a remote worker, a lack of structure is what often prevents us

from performing at our best. 

To conclude, productivity really boils down to just 2 things: setting a

clear agenda and then sticking to it.

Because as the author of Essentialism Greg McKeown once quipped, “If

you don’t prioritize your life, someone else will.”

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How to Deal With Procrastination? 4
Main Types of Procrastinators
Written by Sean Clark

We’ve all experienced at least one of the types of procrastination. A

deadline looms on the horizon, the to-do list item never disappears, and
we never accomplish the task.

Why do people procrastinate? Logically, being a procrastinator makes

no sense. It’s a behavior that induces anxiety and shoots us in the foot
during the long run. Avoiding doing necessary things brings relief in the
short-term, but can be catastrophic in the long run. 

We’ve broken down the causes of procrastination into four general

types. Read on to understand these four flavors, and how to deal with
procrastination.

Types of Procrastination #1: The Lucky Optimist

Some people are optimists. They believe everything will work out – and
it often does.

Putting off a task causes them little stress since they expect it to be
simple. Why get started now when you could wait until the last minute
if it’s all going to work out? Instead of starting early and putting a
check in the box ahead of schedule, they wait until the last moment
(and hope for the best).

This strategy works for some (until it doesn’t). After all, unexpected
problems can come up. Sometimes a task proved to be far more

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complicated than expected. The sheer terror an impossible to-do item
induces when a deadline is just around the corner is enough reason to
beware of your optimism.

Types of Procrastination #2: The Overloaded

Have you ever looked at a massive to-do list? How does it feel to see so
many items, and not be able to wrap your mind around them? Did you
find it hard to get started? 

You might have experienced one of the common types of

procrastination: being overwhelmed. With too many things to pay
attention to, you pay attention to none – and nothing gets done. To
make matters worse, this type of procrastinator is never able to relax
fully or fully work. 

This inability to entirely focus or rest leads to psychological burnout,

since there’s never any time for enjoyment. Exhaustion leads to less
productivity, and this spins into a vicious cycle of fatigue and
unproductive procrastination.

Types of Procrastination #3: The Pleasure-seeking

Avoider
As humans, we’re hardwired to avoid pain. This avoidance leads to
procrastination. 

This type of procrastinator comes in two flavors that sometimes overlap.

The first has a difficult time forcing themselves to do something
uncomfortable. They shy away from the pain of anything
unpleasurable – which can lead to other problems in life.

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On the other side of the same coin is the second flavor. This type of
person chases pleasure. They may not be consciously avoiding the
task. Still, when something more appealing is available, they choose to
do that instead (and begin to fit the stereotype of a digital nomad
perpetually on vacation).

Types of Procrastination #4: The Perfectionist

How does it feel to do a task, but know it’s not the best you could have
done? Do you have a list of partially completed (but never finished)
projects? If it bothers you, you’ve probably fallen into the trap of
procrastination by perfectionism.

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This perfectionism is a typical flavor of procrastination since many of
us spent our lives being told by parents, teachers, and society to do the
best job possible. There’s nothing wrong with that – it’s best to live up to
our full potential.

However, it becomes a problem when it causes us to avoid starting and

finishing a task. The fear of not being perfect, and the overwhelming
effort required to make something as perfect as possible makes it
impossible to get started. 

How to Overcome These Types of Procrastination

Do any of these procrastinator types sound familiar? Try these tips to
make your time more productive and stop putting off tasks.
• Don’t schedule in more work than you can handle. Set aside time
for enjoyable activities to recharge you, while also setting aside
time to focus on work.

• If you find yourself often getting distracted, set a timer for a few
minutes before starting a task and take this time to check your
social media, emails, texts, or whatever else you find distracting.
Then, throw on your best noise cancelling headphones and get
started on your work with profound focus.

• Do you still find yourself procrastinating? Instead of watching TV or

doing other unproductive things, procrastinate on your primary
task by knocking a few other productive items off your list.

• Set deadlines for yourself. Even better, tell someone else about it.
You might let yourself down by procrastinating, but it’s more

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 difficult when we feel that we’re failing someone else’s
expectations for us.

• Don’t worry about doing the perfect job. Focus on accomplishing

the goal. Make a list of the last five things you did that weren’t
perfect – but they were sufficient. Be efficient and work smart.

• If something only takes a couple of minutes, do it now. Go make

that phone call you’ve been putting off (and use Krisp to ensure
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 the clearest call quality). Don’t let small items pile up and mentally
overwhelm you.

• When you find yourself facing a task that you can’t bring yourself
to start, set a timer for fifteen minutes. Commit to working on what
you need to accomplish. Once you’ve gotten started and built
momentum, you might find that fifteen minutes effortlessly turns
into an hour or longer.

• Accept that (at least) half of the things you do in a day won’t be
things you particularly want to do – but you’re going to do them
anyway.

• Visualize the end benefit of your task. Will you earn money? Learn
a new skill? Focus on the reward instead of the pain of the job.

• Break larger projects down into smaller tasks to avoid being

overwhelmed. Knock each item off your list one by one.

• Start a task with a “quick win” – a small, rewarding, simple portion

of the project that only takes a few minutes. This easy victory
builds momentum.

• Make sure the task really does need to be done. What is the one
job you can do that makes the other tasks irrelevant? Maybe your
procrastination is your subconscious telling that the task at hand
isn’t that important.

• Imagine procrastination is a villain that’s coming to your bank

account every day and taking your money. It is. Fight it.
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Why Are You Still Waiting? Get Started Beating
These Types of Procrastination.
Some have said that pain comes from the knowledge that you’re not
reaching your full potential. Procrastination is one of the easiest (and
most common) ways to fail to accomplish your tasks and achieve your
goals.

Did you find yourself in any of these types? Consider these types of
procrastination, and use these tips to create the best version of yourself
that you can be, especially when you work from home.

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• 0 •

Chapter 4:
Best Tools and Resources
for Working from Home
When you work from home, things are different. You'll need
more apps than you're used to—to stay connected and get
things done efficiently when working from home. Here are some
tips for best tools and resources that can help you stay in the
loop.
Best Resources & Tools for Starting
Remote Workers
Written by Sean Clark

So you’re considering (or have started) working remotely – but which

tools for remote work should you choose?

There’s a dizzying array of options from which to choose. Talk to a

dozen remote workers or companies about what they consider the best
tools for remote work, and you’ll soon have a dizzying list of options to
consider.

Don’t worry. To save you time, we’ve compiled a list for you of the most
popular tools for remote work.

Tools for Finding Remote Employers and Clients

If you’re already working for a company that offered you remote work
options – great! 

Don’t already have remote work lined up? Here are some of the most
popular online resources for connecting remote workers with jobs.

Upwork is one of the most well-known online hubs for connecting

freelancers with one-off (and sometimes long-term) online employment.

Fiverr also connects freelancers to online employment. These projects

are often smaller in scope than those found on Upwork.

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NomadList connects remote workers online, although this feature hides
behind paid access.

Flexjobs offers opportunities screened for ads or scams. Plus, it doesn’t

take 20% of your income from each payment like Upwork.

TopTal is similar to the other platforms, although it focuses on providing

top talent for the finance, software, and design remote work niches.

Freelancer.com might be the right choice if you’re looking for your first
clients. Most employers are prioritizing budget over quality, giving you
a chance to boost your previous client list and resume before targeting
higher-budget clients.

Working Nomad and Remote OK scan many of the online

marketplaces mentioned in this list to aggregate potential
opportunities, saving you time during your hunt for remote work.

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Social media can be an excellent source of leads. Check Facebook
groups related to remote work, and nurture your LinkedIn, Twitter, and
Instagram profiles to collect more potential clients.

Remote-how connects remote workers to remote employers but takes

this a step further. It offers (online, of course) conferences focused on
remote work, and also provides training resources for professionals and
companies to develop their remote work skills. 

Plus, it offers a remedy for one of the most common complaints by

remote workers – loneliness – by providing an online community.

Software Tools for Collaborative Communication

in Remote Teams 
You’ve landed your first remote clients or employer, but you need a way
to talk to them. 

Virtual communication tools are one of the crucial segments of tools for
remote workers and a functional managing remote workers toolkit. You
can’t effectively engage in virtual team building without simple, stress-
free ways to communicate online.

Slack
Slack has been a mainstay in the remote work community for years. 
Host online meetings and set up topic-focused chat channels to stay in
the loop with your employers or remote colleagues. Plus, it boasts
integrations with almost any other remote work tool you can name. 

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Twist
While Slack offers a powerhouse of features, some criticize it for being
too distracting for remote workers. The need to be always-connected to
watch for (often distracting) notifications from the real-time chat can
prevent you from “getting in the zone” of deep, focused work.

Twist, created by the Doist team, aims to circumvent these distractions

by providing a more asynchronous approach to remote
communication. It’s more akin to an organized collection of email
inboxes rather than a chatroom – making it an interesting alternative
for communication tools for remote workers.

Skype
It’s been around since the dawn of real-time Internet communications
(back in 2003) and still exists because – it works.

If you’re looking to set up a quick call with a client, you’ll probably use
Skype. It’s commonly used outside the professional world and offers
affordable international calling rates.

Zoom
It’s similar to Skype but generally preferred for video conferencing.
Since you don’t need to share personal contact details (like Skype), it
can be easier to link up with prospects and clients.

You’ll likely have an employer request a Zoom video call with you at
some point, or find yourself in an online Zoom video meeting.

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Choose Your Remote Utilities for Project
Management
You need the right project management software for remote workers. It’s
critical for staying on top of deadlines and assigned tasks – even if
you’re a freelancer.

Todoist
For smaller projects or teams, the free version of Todoist (combined with
a few other tools for remote work) might be all you need. 

If you’ve ever used a popular to-do list app, you’ll be ready to go within
minutes. The paid version offers more features like file attachments.
Still, for more complex projects, you’ll likely need a more robust
alternative.

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ProofHub
With an easy to use interface, ProofHub gives you all the apps you
need to manage projects and remote teams at one place.

The pro version gives you the flexibility to work on to-do lists like in
Todoist or switch to drag and drop kanban boards like in Trello. It also
has plenty of amazing collaboration features like in-built chat, file
sharing, and online proofing.

Trello
With its dead-simple, drag-n-drop kanban-board approach, Trello gives
you plenty of features for managing and collaborating on your
projects.

Like Todoist, the free version offers the staples you need. The pro version
provides some extra features and customizability, along with more
integrations with other tools for remote work.

Asana
It offers more features than Todoist or Trello. For some, this might be
overkill for simple projects – you’ll find yourself wasting time over-
managing projects instead of working.

However, for more complex projects, you’ll need the extra functionality
it provides – especially if you’re collaborating with a remote business or
managing multiple clients.

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Boost Productivity for Remote Workers and
Employees with Time Tracking
Even though remote workers are famed for their increased productivity,
it’s still important to stay disciplined with one of the work from home
best practices.

Add time-tracking utilities to your collection of remote working software.

Toggl gives you a streamlined, no-frills approach to tracking time spent

on projects. It’s there when you need it with handy features like a
Chrome extension. It even integrates into other tools for remote workers,
like Todoist.

And.co offers a bit more than Toggl, including tracking business

expenses and handling invoices. Not all features are free, however.

File-sharing with Team Members and Clients

You’ve got almost everything you need, but one thing is missing from
your war chest of tools for remote workers: a seamless way to
collaborate on and share files with your clients and colleagues.

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Choose one of these tools for remote working that offer file sharing:

OneDrive is Microsoft’s answer to file-sharing. If you’re using Windows,

you’re already using OneDrive in one way or another.

Google Drive is one of the most popular file-sharing tools available due
to its ease of use and sharing. 

It also works flawlessly with the free Google Docs suite, which offers
Google Docs (a Microsoft Word alternative), Google Sheets (a
Microsoft Excel alternative), and much more.

Dropbox offers less free storage space than Google Drive but uses less
data and syncs faster thanks to its different technology. 

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This efficiency can be useful if you’re a digital nomad on a tight data
budget or need the fastest possible syncing for collaboration.

Make-or-break Your Success with the Right Tools

for Remote Work
Getting started with remote work doesn’t require you to purchase and
learn a dozen new programs. 

Instead, save your focus for what matters – your work – and pick what
you need from these tried-and-true tools for remote workers.

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Best Productivity Apps for Working
from Home in 2020
Written by Loni K

Today, we’ve reached a point where not only remote work is possible,
but also vital. Companies are increasingly using technology and
productivity apps to boost remote team efficiency. Remote work is not
just becoming popular but is a reality for more and more teams who
need to use various tools to collaborate virtually across the world.

Some of these productivity apps are straightforward––others are tools

you may not even have known you needed.

So without further ado, let’s dive in!

No More Scheduling Hassle

Remote or not, time management is one of the main challenges of
working, period. But when you have a remote team, things get a little
complicated. 

Which time zones are your colleagues working from? When’s the best
time to set a meeting if one of them’s in Australia and the other in New
York?

The time-saving tools below can turn that headache into a beautiful UI
that handles these time-consuming tasks for you.

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Calendly
For one-on-one meetings, it’s hard to beat Calendly, a tool that gets rid
of the need for other people to ask you questions you can’t answer
right away like “What’s your availability this week?” or “Can you do
2:00 PM (PST) on Monday?” 

Instead of forcing you to check your calendar and respond to your

colleague’s email, Calendly lets you set your availability on your very
own “times I’m free” calendar. Any free slot on your calendar is a game
for your remote teammates or business associates to schedule a
meeting. 

Of course, the app will send all attendees reminders and confirmation
emails, so you don’t have to worry about checking who scheduled what
when.

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Doodle 
On the other hand, sometimes you need to ask other people when
they’re free, usually followed by a bit of back-and-forth while you try
and figure out the best time for you both. Enter Doodle.

Doodle is a scheduling survey app that asks everyone to tick time slots
that work for them. Once everyone has filled out the slots, you’ll be able
to see in one glance the optimal times to schedule something.

Neat, huh?

Float
Synced calendars are a must for seeing everyone’s availability, but
Float takes this idea to the next level. They’ve developed a tool that lets
teams plan smart by giving them access to others’ resources and
bandwidth as opposed to simply seeing when they’re in a meeting.

At a glance, you can see who’s on the team, what their roles and titles
are, and how many hours they’re available for work. It sounds like a

99
simple idea but when planning projects, this kind of dashboard can
come in very handy when managing timelines and keeping things on
schedule.

Apart from basic functions like scheduling on the cloud, with Float you
can also see a project’s status, milestones, and real-time budget
allocation with their reporting tool. 

Organize Better
Let’s face it. One of the main challenges of working on a remote team is
project management. You simply can’t walk up to a colleague’s desk
and ask how that project’s coming along. 

That makes these project management tools the lifeblood of any

operation that wants a sustainable way to manage remote team
productivity.

Trello
Trello made kanban boards a thing. Like a lot of neat systems for
organization, kanban is a Japanese term for a system in lean
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manufacturing that’s now spread to project management as a whole.
Trello adopted this to create a visual tool that’s highly satisfying and
useful for seeing which project is at which stage of the pipeline.
Now you can see exactly where everything is, who’s working on what,
and best of all––move around those cards on the board at your
pleasure. 

Notion
A relatively new player in the field, Notion is a visually appealing tool
that advocates for ample emoji use and offers all-in-one features. It’s
great for creating an internal knowledge base, managing to-do tasks,
and working with spreadsheets.

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This evolving product has a lot of potential and remote teams can
experiment with it to see how they can use it to their best advantage. 

ProofHub
Like Notion, ProofHub seeks to replace a set of apps for collaboration
and instead put them under a single umbrella. Among its features are
in-app chats, markup tools, kanban boards, timesheets, team
calendars, and a central cloud for storing files.

In short, it’s a robust communication tool for teams, where everyone

gets instant access to important announcements on their dashboard,
as well as a single calendar and project management tool to see what
everyone’s working on. You can even invite clients to the software so
they can see progress in real-time.

Productivity Apps For Collaborating Remotely

In lieu of meetings upon meetings, remote teams need tools that enable
them to communicate complex ideas efficiently in writing and across
different time zones. Not everything can be done verbally all the time––

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making these tools below incredibly important for remote team
productivity.

Twist
Twist is the best asynchronous communications tool out there. It was
intentionally built by and for remote teams, bearing their unique
challenges in mind. Doist, the company behind the product, realized
that using Slack was putting pressure on their remote team to
communicate synchronously even though they’re scattered across
several time zones.

Deciding they needed a tool that would better accommodate their

needs, they built Twist. Unlike other communication tools like Slack,
Twist is not a chat, nor does it thrive on notifications. Instead, the
software uses ‘threads’ to store conversations under a specific topic so

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that anyone can jump in at any time and see the discussion that’s taken
place while they were away.

Best of all, it offers various ways to turn off notifications, encouraging

you to focus on your work rather than distractedly catching up with
your colleagues at all times. 

InVision
Replacing regular design meetings with a remote tool might seem
rightfully challenging but InVision has made it beautifully possible. Not
only can you upload your prototypes to share with your colleagues,
but you can also leave your notes and feedback directly on the
wireframe, mockup, and other design elements for easy collaboration. 

Using their digital whiteboard, Freehand, remote team members can

leave notes, which can then be followed by everyone else. You’ll know
who contributed which note and respond with your own.

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Personal Productivity Boost
So it’s all fine for remote teams to find tools that let them collaborate
wherever they are, but what about personal productivity? Sure, working
remotely means freedom from office distractions but how can you
motivate yourself and improve focus when you’re sitting in your
pajamas at home?

Check out these best productivity apps to find tools that can boost
your personal productivity and in turn, contribute to the overall remote
team productivity.

Freedom
The number one distraction for anyone working on a computer is the
internet. Unfortunately, collaborating remotely often means you can’t
turn this off. But there are ways to banish the most time-consuming
blackholes from your screen. 

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Freedom is the ultimate distraction blocker for those who find
themselves climbing down the rabbit hole of news and social media
sites. You can tell yourself reading tech news on Reddit or Hacker News
is ‘research’ but if you want to be honest with yourself and improve
your focus on more urgent tasks, simply set Freedom to block those
sites for any given time––across all your devices.

Krisp
Why are noise-canceling headphones so popular? In our modern world,
unwelcome noises are a part of everyday life. From honking horns and
fire trucks to your neighbor’s dog or even your own, sounds are a part
of your day whether you’re working remotely or in the office. When it’s

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time to make calls, these noises can be distracting at best and
embarrassing at worst.

Krisp gives you the ability to block them out to make your calls
interruption-free. No more “What was that?” or “Sorry, my dog’s a little
restless today,” during your meetings. Turn off all background noise on
either your end or your call partner’s side with one click. Simple as that.

Noisli
Sometimes, you want to do the opposite of blocking out noise. Putting
on relaxing sounds in the background can improve your focus or make
you feel like you’re in nature.

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With Noisli, you can choose the sound you want––thunder, rain, forest,
etc––by picking one or a combination to create the perfect backdrop
while you work.

Bear
Not all note-taking is equal. That is to say, sometimes you just need to
jot down your ideas––not for anyone else to see, not to write down a
recap, but only to get your creative juices flowing. Or even to remember
specific details you know will be important to your work.

Bear lets you organize these scattered notes in a beautiful, minimalist

way across your phone, tablet, and computer. No more lost post-its,
scraps of unorganized notebook paper, or impossible-to-find notes
across random apps on your phone or computer.

Instead, keep them in-sync and find them easily with search. Most
importantly, Bear’s beautiful design makes these notes a joy to read, no
matter how random they may be.

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Clockify
As peak productivity has become a main focus for many workers today,
time tracking tools have never been more popular. Clockify is unique in
that it’s free with unlimited users and projects, with optional upgrades
that offer advanced functionality such as the ability to hide time from
certain users or brand your reports.

Basic features include reports, timesheets, and tracking billable hours.

It’s a tool that will give you a very good look at how you’re spending
your time and how much each client or project generates. 

Work From Home Productivity Apps: Honorable

Mentions
Though this list is plenty to get you started on the right foot, there are
still more tools worth checking out. We’ve listed some of them below:
• iA Writer: Writing software that lets you focus purely on the
writing.
• Instapaper: An app that lets you save articles on the web to read
later.

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 • Otter: An AI-assistant that transcribes your meetings.
• Toggl: An easy-to-use time-tracking tool to track your own
productivity levels.
• Todoist: A to-do app that comes packed with useful features to get
your work done.

To be sure, this is not a complete list. But the fact that there are so
many powerful, well-designed tools for focused, productive work is a
testament to how the future of work will shape up––more remote work
and less time-sucking distractions.

Do you have a favorite productivity app that’s not listed here? Share it
on Twitter and tag us, we’ll add it here. 

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Top 5 Relaxing Sounds To Help You
Focus
Written by Tobi Abdulgafar

So what is it about relaxing sounds? Let’s take a peaceful moment, get

comfortable, and see for ourselves.

The times have never been more stressful – countless economic and
social challenges are making more and more people stressed out, they
worry about getting kicked out of their jobs, they worry that they might
default on their car payments, they are stressed about their credit card
debt and their ailing credit scores, they worry about health insurance
and student loans and the list goes on. 

According to Gallup, about 8 in 10 Americans say they frequently

encounter stress in their daily lives. No day goes by without them being
stressed out.

And like it or not, stress negatively impacts our health. We are hardly
able to relax, we find it difficult, if not impossible, to focus at work. We
get irritable and moody, our blood pressure goes up, and our sleep
patterns get messed up.

Well, what’s the way forward? Experts have proffered numerous

solutions to this problem. Solutions with varying degrees of
complexities, but there’s one that’s uncomplicated, ubiquitous and free
or almost free, and that is — listening to relaxing sounds.

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These are sounds that, just by listening to them, your brain switches
into relaxation mode and your body follows suit in no time.
Here are 5 such sounds:

1. Silence
Well, this one seems like a no-brainer. One of the best ways to relax and
focus is to be in an environment where there’s some measure of peace
and quiet. You wouldn’t go to a rock concert seeking to relax or focus,
or would you? 

In fact, if you’ve ever lived close to a busy airport such as the one in
Dubai, Atlanta or Chicago, you would have a better appreciation for
the adage that says “silence is golden”.

People who live close to airports often complain of noise-induced sleep

deprivation, and this causes them to wake up tired and irritable most
mornings, if that goes on for an extended period of time, it might even

112
lead to cardiovascular diseases. The noise comes majorly from aircraft
taking off and landing. 
According to a CNN report, every single day, an average of 120
airplanes are flying in and out of Atlanta airport every hour. That’s 2
planes every minute! Imagine having to endure that every night for the
next 5 years and you’ll begin to realize how golden silence is.
If you need more silence in your workplace, especially during
conferencing and remote team meetings, you can use noise cancelling
headphones and noise cancelling apps.

2. White noise
First of all, white noise has absolutely nothing to do with the color
white. Having said that, what then is white noise, and why should you
care?

A number of people describe white noise as a continuous “sh” sound,

the kind of sound you might hear at a waterfall. Could this be
considered as one of the relaxing sounds? It depends on your
perception, so why not give it a try yourself.

White noise is a mixture of all the sound frequencies that are audible to
the human ear, and it turns out that this noise has a lot of beneficial
effects on humans.

For starters, research in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood

has reported that babies fall asleep faster on exposure to white noise.
People suffering from Tinnitus (a disease where people have a ringing
sensation in their ears) — have also been shown to benefit from white
noise.

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3. Ocean sounds
Ever had time to listen to the sound of the waves at the beach? The
gentle, soothing sound that the waves make when they splash onto the
sand and rock. 

A lot of people go to the beach just to listen to that sound because,

according to them, it helps them to relax, clear their heads and

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meditate. Meditation sure does a lot of good – it helps us reduce stress,
control anxiety and promote our emotional health. 

So if you feel there’s a build-up of stress in your system, a trip to the

beach might just be all the help you’ll need and have all the relaxing
sounds you look for.

4. Pink noise
“What’s with noise and colors?” You might wonder “Are they a match
made in heaven?” Well, it turns out pink noise is anything but pink
(noises are colorless). 

Pink noise is a lot like white noise, the only difference being that pink
noise switches ever so subtly between high and low frequencies,
mimicking the sounds of nature.

Pink noise has been shown to lull people to sleep and even help in
forming stronger memories (by establishing more powerful neuronal
connections in our brains). 

So there you have it, you really can’t tell whether or not pink noise will
work for you unless you try it. You don’t need any sophisticated
gadgets to produce pink noise. If you sleep with the fan on in your
room, you’re probably already enjoying pink noise, albeit a bit
adulterated form of it. 

Want to take things a notch higher, download an app that generates

the noise, or better still, there are online tools that produce a wide
range of noises that you can choose from.

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5. Raindrops
It’s a long, arduous day at work, but thankfully you made it back home
in one piece the long, tortuous commute, the nosy co-worker who kept
getting on your nerves, your annoying boss who micromanages every
single task assigned to you and every other thing in between, long story
short you arrive home stressed and longing for a relaxing evening.

116
The sound of raindrops might just help to refresh you and improve your
mood and just like the sound of ocean waves crashing against rock and
sand, many people confess that the gentle sound of raindrops make it
somewhat easier for them to relax and to fall asleep.

And if you don’t get rain when you need it, you can use online tools to
generate pre-recorded raindrops sound that you can listen to instead.

Over to you
What sounds have you tried before and found to be strangely relaxing?
Does silence unnerve you? Do you feel weird on the morning just after it
snows, when everything is strangely quiet and calm? How about when
walking in the woods on a fall morning with birds tooting and dead
leaves crackling under your feet?

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Chapter 5:
Conferencing at Home:
The Do’s and Don’ts
When working at home, communication takes more effort
than when you're in the office. In these articles you'll learn
how to master conferencing at home and these tips will ensure
that your next conference call will be very productive.
What’s Better: Audio Conference or
Video Conference?
Written by Anna B.

Conference calls are an old talk now that everyone keeps in touch
through distance. Many people meet remotely and get things done a lot
quicker. Although it doesn’t mean that conference calls are always
ideal. We can endlessly talk about conference call dark sides but the
real question is which type is more efficient – audio conferencing or
video conferencing?

We have all gathered here to answer that question by pointing out the
pros and cons of both.

Audio Conference
This type of modern conferencing is otherwise called teleconferencing
and is widely accepted by almost everyone in the business field. Audio
conferencing gives people the ability to dial directly to the
conferencing bridge to join the conference call, or be added by the
conference call hosts themselves.

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Pros of Audio Conference:
Ease of use – audio conferencing is a common practice, so people are
familiar with its usage. You can effortlessly join a conference call by
dialing the same number as other participants and accept calls right at
your desk.

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Invisibility – No additional time required for getting ready for the call
since you won’t be seen. This can also be an advantage if you feel more
comfortable leading a voice conversation rather than face to face.

Accessibility – Audio conference calls are available for any

conferencing devices, whether it’s a landline or your personal mobile
phone, so you can join a conference call from anywhere.

Affordability – Using audio conferences through VoIP can be free of

charge, and conference call hardware is fairly affordable. You may
have to invest in acquiring an audio conferencing system for higher
quality conference calls, but again – it’s affordable, especially if you’re
using it with teams.

Manageability – In case the audio conference call hasn’t been

scheduled, you can phone the participants and hold the meeting
spontaneously – it won’t require any setup or additional efforts to invite
the participants and wait for the invitation to be accepted.

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Cons of Audio Conference:
Attention span – It’s difficult to stay focused throughout the meeting
without having any visual cues. You will have to try doodling or taking
notes to keep stimulating your brain to concentrate and not daydream
or get sidetracked. Mastering conference call tips is not that easy, after
all.

Misinformation – In case of technical difficulties with the audio, you

won’t be able to lipread everything that people talk about. Having a
single source of information in the form of audio can pressure people.
This happens as participants try to remember every detail of the call
according to what they heard, which often causes misunderstandings.

Surroundings – It’s difficult to understand who’s speaking if you don’t

hear their name before they start their speech. It’s also difficult to hear
someone nod as they forget to give an affirmative signal. Overall, the
lack of visuals makes it harder to follow the natural flow of
conversation. To avoid this, introduce yourself at the beginning of the
call and keep reminding your name whenever you speak. You may ask
others to do so as well.  

Video Conferencing
This type of conferencing includes the transmission of both audio and
video data by using computer networks. Video conferencing gained
popularity later in the conferencing game, but it’s just as applicable
and widely used for many remote business meetings.

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Pros of Video Conferencing:
Visuals – It’s easier to pick up on the conversation details when you
can see the person and their body language. It’s also easier to show
data using screen sharing rather than explain it through words. It helps
people engage in the conversation easier and get the feeling of a real
face-to-face meeting.

Attention span – This is a pro for video conferencing because people

can bring their focus back to the video by watching the person. There
are many aspects to observe other than voice, so the chances to be
bored and daydream are considerably lower.

Accessibility – Just like audio conferencing, video conferencing is also

accessible from everywhere and by any conferencing device, provided
you have an internet connection.

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Cons of Video Conferencing:
Poor connection – Transmitting both audio and video data can result
in a poor internet connection. Add up screen sharing and more
participants and you’ve got yourself a disaster. In such cases,
immediately turn off the video to keep the call going.

Cost – Investing in a high-quality video conferencing system can be

relatively more expensive than an audio conferencing system.

Audio latency – It’s a common technical issue with video conferencing

where audio is delayed and doesn’t match the video. These cases make
it harder to discuss important topics, so mute audio and turn off video
to start over again. If the audio gets delayed after a while, either restart
or reschedule the call.

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Overall, both audio and video conferencing benefits outweigh their
disadvantages. The key point is to use them optimally. For shorter
conference calls, it’s more comfortable to simply dial the number, join
the call and discuss everything on point.

For longer meetings, it’s better to switch to video conferencing to be

able to keep attention longer and read the visual cues. And if you have
to discuss and analyze data or any documents, presentations or other
files, video conferencing and screen sharing is the best option.

125
8 Steps for Better Sound Quality in
Conference Calls
Written by Nina Shahverdyan

Technical difficulties with sound quality are an inseparable part of any

conference call. Imagine how many conference calls you have been
through – if you haven’t had a single audio issue, then you probably
will sometime later.

One of the most common troubles is audio quality – whether it’s voice
interruptions, freezing, or delayed audio, it will negatively affect the
flow of the conference call.

To keep on working productive and ensure that your conference call

experience is as smooth as possible, we’ve created a short guide on
how to improve audio during conference calls. With this, you can face
any technical issue like a hero.

1. Choose the best provider

First things first: even if you have the best internet speed and the best
audio gadgets, your conference call may still fail if your conferencing
service is not reliable. Before choosing your provider, make sure to read
all the independent reviews to see personal experience with that
provider.

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Remember that free conference call services usually can’t be the
strongest and quickest ones, so you better invest some money for a
quality provider. In this case, a good option would be to look for
conference call services that were established a long time ago and are
highly ranked among users.

Here are some of the most user-satisfied platforms:

• Zoom
• Uberconference
• Webex
• Conference Calling

2. Check your internet connection

Test your WiFi before the call starts and make sure it’s not used by too
many users and devices so that the speed stays moderate. Ask your

127
colleagues to turn off WiFi from the devices they don’t use or connect
to another hotspot.

Without a good connection, your conference call will be a disaster. It

will keep connecting and disconnecting multiple times, which will result
in having an unproductive meeting and annoyed conference call
participants.

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3. Don’t use cell phones
Joining a conference call with your smartphone isn’t the best idea. We
sure understand that everyone is already used to having their phone as
the main means of communication, but when you do something as
important as a conference call, choose a proper conferencing device.

Even the most expensive and modern phones don’t have better sound
quality like the good old landline phones or wired computers.

Now if you don’t have any other option except your phone, we will
suggest you arrange your conference call in a quiet room. If your
conference call is happening on the move or in a noisy place, make sure
to mute your microphone when you aren’t speaking –  your partner will
thank you for that.

4. Eliminate the noise

It’s crucial to follow conference call etiquette and have a noiseless and
quiet background during the call. Don’t have your conference call in the
cafeteria or in the public space of your office. Instead, find a small
room where you will be alone, so nothing can distract you. Don’t
choose big areas without much furniture or with blank walls – this will
cause an echo in the room, which will disturb your conversation.

If you want a way quicker solution, opt for Krisp app. It will remove all
background noise from both sides of the call and will make your voice
sound HD and crisp!

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5. Stop the audio echo
Have you ever encountered a situation when you speak and hear your
every word back?

This usually happens when there are lots of people, and your speaker
system is situated too close to your microphone, and the sound gets
reflected in the speakers.

All you have to do is move the mic away. If you are on your phone,
always mute yourself when listening to others on speakerphone since
this can reflect an echo as well.

6. Don’t use a speakerphone

Speakerphones are a convenient option for hands-free conference calls,
though there is trouble with that too.

130
Speakerphones don’t usually have high quality, which makes you and
your partners suffer.

Your colleagues might have trouble hearing you or vice versa – will hear
not only you but all the keystrokes and hand moves you do.  

Avoid using a speakerphone if your speech is going to be long. It would

be wiser to invest in a headset since your hands still will be free for
taking notes, and you will have a better conference call experience.

7. Keep the distance

There should be a distance between you and your microphone. If you
are too away from it, your colleagues won’t hear you. On the other
side, if you are too close to it, they will hear loud popping sound
whenever you pronounce letters “p” and “b.”  

131
For this reason, try to adjust the distance before the conference,
pronounce these sounds and pay attention to the way you hear them
out of speakers: if your “p”-s and “b”-s are too sharp, move your
microphone away just a bit.

Put your headset mic off to the side of your mouth and not directly in
front of it, to avoid popping.

8. Start once more

If you have terrible issues with your audio and all your technical
adjustments fail to help, turn off the call and start it again. Strangely
enough, it usually helps (just like how restarting is the ultimate solution
to every computer). Don’t forget to warn the call participants in
advance and all will be good!

132
Quick Guide to Conference Call
Etiquette
Written by Nina Shahverdyan

Conference calls are as popular as ever with no boundaries of physical

presence. But this doesn’t make them any less important than physical
meetings. In fact, conference call etiquette can affect the quality and
results of your meetings. It’s unlikely for you to reach any result if you
keep checking your email or playing a game during a conference call.

This being said, respecting the conference call etiquette is as important

as physical meeting etiquette, and depending on your abilities to follow
them – you will either succeed or fail.

Below we have organized a detailed guide of conference call etiquette

to help you ensure that your next conference call will be very
productive!

133
Before the conference call starts
Arrangement:
1. Inform all the participants about the details of the meeting – If
you are the leader of the call, make sure to inform all the
participants about who will be attending the meeting. It’s a good
idea to send out a Google calendar with time, date and participant
names. This way, people will know who they will be talking to and
what they need to prepare.

2. Set time limits – Since the meeting isn’t personal, it’s very easy to
get off the topic. Set strict time limits and remember that you have a
specific amount of time to handle everything you need to discuss.

3. Prepare your agenda – Your time is not endless – you need to have
a detailed agenda to guide you through the meeting and discuss
everything on the topic.

4. Agree who is calling whom in advance – Make sure everyone has

the right number to call and avoid time delays and confusion.

Technical issues:
1. Check your device – Your conferencing device (laptop, phone, or
whatever device you’re using to make a call) should be charged.
Imagine what will happen if it suddenly turns off in the middle of the
conversation!

2. Choose the right location – Make sure to choose a quiet area for
the call. Your partners will be annoyed to hear passing cars or side
conversations during their call. If you don’t have a chance to do so,

134
 use Krisp noise cancelling app, which mutes background noise in
calls from both sides and enhances your voice quality.

3. Relax – And stay positive: everything will be fine! Technical issues

happen to everyone, so if it does to you, just stay calm. If you are
too nervous, you can practice a few tips to alleviate stress before
conference calls.

During the conference call

Etiquette:
1. Don’t be late – Let’s agree together that a conference call is also a
meeting. You try to be on time in real life meetings, right? Treat
conference calls similarly, be on time.

2. Introduce yourself – When starting a conference call, never forget

to introduce yourself. It’s very important that people know and get
accustomed to your voice, so they understand who is talking. If
there are people who you’ve never met, make sure that everyone
introduces themselves by the name, so the speakers will have a
better understanding of who the attendees are.

3. Let other people talk – While talking, pause regularly between

your speech. This will give an opportunity for participants to clarify
or ask something.

4. Inform people about leaving the conference – If you are leaving
during the conversation, you should let other people know since it
will be awkward and rude if somebody talks to you and then finds
out you weren’t on the call all that time.

135
Productivity:
1. Always stay on topic – Take a look at your agenda if you feel like
the meeting is going the other way round. You have specific things
to discuss, so don’t spend time on things that can be discussed out
of the official call. When someone joins late, it’s not a good idea to
waste time and fill them in on what happened. Instead, the late
joiners can check the meeting notes or catch up with you after the
call.

2. Don’t let the silence invade your conference call – Participants

have no opportunity to see you, so if they don’t hear you too then
communication will drop to zero. Let other people know if you’re
busy checking something so they don’t think of technical issues or
you disregard the conversation.

136
3. Tell your participants that the conference is wrapping up – Don’t
just suddenly say “bye” and go out of the call. The fact that the
conversation is ending will give attendees the opportunity to say
their final words or ask the last question.

Technical issues:
1. Mute yourself when you aren’t speaking – That will ensure that
no noise will disrupt the meeting. However, if you have Krisp, there
will be no need for that: foreign voices will be muted automatically,
and only your voice will be heard during the conversation.

2. Also, don’t forget to unmute yourself. You will create unusual

silence in the conversation and will waste your time repeating
yourself.

3. Don’t put your conference call on hold – First of all, it is a sign of

disrespect and shows your lack of attention and interest. Secondly,
on-hold music will start playing, and it will disturb other call
participants.

After the conference call

1. Write down all the decisions made during the conference call –
 Not only will this help you understand what you’ve achieved during
the conference call but also will help you remember what you have
to do.

2. Connect with the new acquaintances – If you got acquainted with
new people during the conference call, make sure to connect with
them via social media or email. This will ease future communication

137
 with them.

3. Share the results – Send the next steps and the results of the
conference call to the participants, so they also know their tasks
and duties.

4. Relax once more – The conference call is over.

 
We hope that this guide has helped you and that your upcoming
conference call will be a total success. Good luck!

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• • • •
• • • •
Chapter 6::
How to Find a Work from
Home Job
Looking to find a work-from-home? Here are some tips to get
you going in the right direction. From the fastest growing job
industries to the best website where you can find a job. Plus,
we cover some essential tips on how to build your portfolio
when you work from home and how to prepare yourself for
remote interviews.
How to Find Remote Work in 2020?
Are you looking for ways how to find remote work?

In 2020, there’s more remote work from home jobs available than ever
before – but it can be hard to know where to get started. Keep reading
for some tips and tricks to find jobs that let you work from home.

Are Remote Companies Right For You? (Maybe

Coronavirus Left You With No Choice)
First things first: before you start diving into how to find remote work,
there’s an important question. Are remote jobs right for you?

Some careers are well suited for working remotely. Of the best remote
jobs, marketing, customer service, and remote tech jobs have
commonly topped the list. Along with an often considerable remote
developer salary, other top-paying remote jobs include consulting,
freelancing, and some executive positions.

However, some other jobs aren’t a great fit when considering the best
careers for remote work. For example, a surgeon can’t usually work
from home; neither can a construction worker.

Maybe you’re forced to work from home now (thanks to the coronavirus
pandemic, many jobs moved from the office to home). If you need some
extra income from remote work from home jobs, part-time is also an
option.

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Pros of Working from Home (You Could Even Be a
Digital Nomad)
Working from home offers quite a few benefits for both employers and
employees.

Employees often have less stress and feel happier. Increased freedom
and flexibility is another bonus. In fact, some remote workers are
“digital nomads” – they travel the world while working remotely.

Employers often enjoy increased productivity, higher employee

retention, and increased access to top talent in the industry.

In both cases, employers and employees tend to save significant

amounts of money, thanks to decreased commute and overhead costs.

Remote Positions Have Challenges

However, remote work comes with a new set of challenges you’ll need to
handle.

Are you comfortable with technology? Are you willing to learn the art of
effective online communication?

Would previous employers consider you trustworthy? Do you enjoy

your job and have the self-discipline to manage yourself? Do you prefer
to be with people, or are you willing to be alone on most workdays while
working from home?

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These are all vital skills and preferences that will make-or-break your
work from home enjoyment.

Get Familiar with the Community and Lingo

(Freelancing, Telecommuting, Working from
Home?)
There are many ways how to find remote work, meaning that you don’t
have to be a full-time employee of a single company.

You could be working multiple remote jobs as a part-time employee,

freelancing with numerous (often short-term clients), or working
contracts for a single company. Some will prefer working for a single
job full-time, while others might prefer juggling multiple part-time jobs.

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Consider which one works best for you. Maybe the income from a part-
time job is all you need, freeing up precious time in your day. Perhaps
you prefer to harness multiple skills in a variety of roles, or you’d prefer
to do contract work for a few months, then take a few months off.

Remote Job Boards (There’s More than FlexJobs)

There’s a dizzying array of websites where you can hunt for remote jobs
online. Sites such as RemoteOK, The Muse Jobs, Remote.io, and
FlexJobs – remote work job boards are abundant.

In addition to job sites, less obvious places such as social media. If you
have a strong presence on LinkedIn or Twitter, remote work might find
you as prospects contact you.

Check Facebook – remote jobs are often posted in relevant groups,

making it one of the less utilized ways how to find remote work. Plus, if
you’re a digital nomad, you have a leg up when looking for remote
travel jobs worldwide. Other full-time traveling entrepreneurs often post
remote work jobs for digital nomads.

Facebook groups can offer a not-so-obvious way to get a remote job

with no experience. If you have a strong resume or work experience, this
solves much of the challenge of how to find remote jobs on LinkedIn.

Remote Job Hiring Applications: Resume

Considerations
Once you’ve decided on your strategy for how to find remote work, it’s
time to get your resume in order.

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Highlight any familiarity you have with the best tools for remote work. If
you’re not already familiar with them, watch some videos and spend
some time getting comfortable with them.

Remote work requires great communicators. Display your

communication skills by ensuring your resume is typo-free, keeping
your language easily understandable, and including all relevant
details.

Hiring a remote worker can be risky since remote workers need to be

disciplined problem solvers with plenty of motivation. Make sure to
mention anything you’ve done that illustrates these skills, even if you
need to start a side-hustle.

Do be careful when talking about side projects, since you don’t want to
give the impression that you’ll be distracted from the position for which
you’re applying.

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Remote Interviews Are Different (Even If They’re
Entry Level)
Once you’ve applied, a crucial part of how to find remote work is to get
ready for interviews. When interviewing with a remote company, there
might be some differences than when applying for traditional office
jobs.

For example, remote positions are often more laid back. You don’t want
to seem overly uptight – but balance this with looking serious about the
job. Do you seem like the kind of person that the interviewer would want
to spend time with inside and outside of work?

It’s often more acceptable to talk about personal life during remote
interviews. Most remote companies are proud of and enjoy their
diversity. Be professional, but don’t be afraid to share your hobbies and
interests.

Ready to Start Hunting for Your Remote Career?

Most remote workers love working remotely, but the path from a
traditional office job to a remote job isn’t always obvious. There’s no
one best way how to find remote work, but these tips will help you get
started.

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How To Prepare For That Important
Remote Interview
Written by Walter Yeates

With new digital workplaces emerging as a norm throughout society,

this evolution leads to the further prevalence of remote interviews. As
remote workplaces and work at home opportunities become more
bountiful, the greater is the need to master the art of successfully
passing online interviews. Even older workers may be asked to have
their interviews conducted remotely.

Some may treat a remote interview in the same light as an in-person

interview, but several unique challenges present themselves when
giving an interview in the digital realm.

Today, we’re going to investigate how you can prepare for a remote
interview, no matter your age group. One cannot be too prepared when
stepping into the unknown, the following tips will prepare you for any
remote interview that comes your way.

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Rest Beforehand
“Sleep is vital to our overall well-being, so it shouldn’t come as much of
a surprise that being well-rested before your interview is especially
important,” Career Metis stated about sleeping prior to an interview.

“The benefits one gets when sleeping are unmistakable. Your memory
will improve greatly, your concentration will become more precise, and
your creativity will be sparked anew.”

While their advice was designed for those preparing for a traditional
brick and mortar interview, this is one of the several similarities the two
different interviews have in common. Sleeping well prior to a remote
interview will allow you to perform at your best.

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The temptation of skipping sleep due to not having to travel to an
interview location is better off ignored. Resting and being awake for
thirty minutes to an hour will give your body the time it needs to adjust
and perform at optimum levels.

Study, Study, Study

It’s important to study prior to your remote interview. Due to the
opportunities presented by technology, your interviewer may ask you
to complete tasks on your computer or even ask you to take a short test.

Familiarizing yourself with the company and the various aspects of the
position you applied for are two key points to study prior to your
interview. This doesn’t mean you need to spend hours on end
researching, but it does imply that you shouldn’t go into a remote
interview without preparation.

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If there is a specific question that could come up regarding how you
would be a fit for the position, knowing exactly what the position could
entail (including possible tasks you may handle) will go a long way in
impressing your potential employer.

Dress Like The Interview Is In-Person

If you aren’t given instructions on whether your interviewer expects you
to stream video during the interview, there are two options available to
you.

•         Ask whether you are expected to appear on camera.

•         Dress as if you were going to an in-person interview.

Without instruction, either way, it’s best to dress as if you were

expecting to appear on camera. Asking otherwise may give the
impression that you were planning on doing the interview immediately
after getting out of bed.

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Presenting yourself in a professional manner is going to be the
expectation of the company and the person-in-charge of your interview.
Not meeting those expectations could result in you not being passed
over when it comes to deciding who to hire.

Check Your Equipment Beforehand

Remote interviews require technology. Meaning you must ensure the
software where the interview is taking place works fluidly when it’s time
for the interview.

Whether the interview is taking place through Skype, Zoom, or another

peer to peer software — test it before the interview. Most programs
have a testing feature that allows you to mimic a live call.

These features also allow you to gauge whether the software

recognizes your microphone, is picking up enough volume, and if the
program is running efficiently with your internet connection.

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The worst-case scenario is attempting to log on to the interview
software five minutes prior and running into a laundry list of problems
that cause you to be late for your interview.

Come With Questions Prepared

Coming prepared with questions and being an active participant
throughout the interview will make you appear more personable. This
approach is more effective than briefly answering questions and
appearing to be afraid of saying the ‘wrong thing.’

This is where studying comes into play. Prepare a couple of questions

beforehand about the company and your job. You don’t have to force
questions, approach the situation as a journalist who is generally
curious about a topic.

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The more authentic and genuinely interesting questions you ask, the
more likely you are to stand out during the hiring process. Your
interview is an audition, put your best foot forward and show your
personality. Asking questions or having a lively question and answer
period with your interviewer will help your cause.

Even if they don’t directly ask if you have questions, don’t hesitate to
bring up the topic yourself. Showing initiative and intellectual curiosity
will only go to help your chances of being hired.

This is especially important in a remote interview.  It’s likely the job will
allow you to work unmonitored. It’s easier for an employer to trust
someone when they can create a connection with them.

Showing that you care about the inner workings of the company and
position are both great ways to show that you are invested and
trustworthy. When you have a remote interview, keep these tips in mind
as they will help improve your chances of getting hired to a great
digital opportunity.

Keep in mind that a remote interview is your opportunity to receive a

flexible job outside of the traditional office space. Approach your
interview with respect and you will put your best foot forward.

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How To Build Work Portfolio as a
Remote Worker
Written by Walter Yeates

Welcome all, I hope you’re having a lovely day.

Hold on, we’ll get into the topic shortly. Sometimes it’s good to ease into
things, especially when our focus is centered on thriving in the digital
world as a remote worker.

See how I worked that transition?

No matter their vertical; remote workers have to build a work portfolio

that highlights their strengths and ability produce while working
outside of a traditional office setting.

So that’s it; the entire focus of this blog will be to give digital nomads,
freelancers, and home office workers some actionable advice on how to
build their portfolio through digital means.

Some may feel the process is intuitive; however, nothing in the digital
workplace is really ever that simple. There are several tactics the digital
worker can use to showcase their work, personality, and appeal to
forward-thinking companies. 

Ready to embark on this journey?

Good, let’s go.

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Let’s Talk LinkedIn & Upwork for Work Portfolio
So, what does Upwork, a large freelance jobs board and escrow
manager, have to do with building a work portfolio? Easy, being active
on Upwork allows remote workers to gain jobs and feedback, which
then can be used for their portfolio.

Upwork maintains a site-specific portfolio for workers, also allowing for

work completed outside the confines of their platform to be referenced
as well. However, the controversial ‘Job Success Score’ and sometimes
unfair comments left by clients can lower your reputation among future
clients.

No, it’s not a perfect system. Yet, the benefits of using the platform to
gain revenue and useful portfolio additions far outweigh the minor
annoyances. The frustrating aspects will bug you from time to time, but
there is no question of how great Upwork is for helping digital nomads
and freelancers at building their portfolio. 
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Next is LinkedIn that allows users to craft their portfolios, highlight what
they want, showcase their work, interests, and communicate with those
from a variety of verticals. It’s not the most active social media platform
for freelancers, but it can be a good tool.

The traditional remote worker will fit right in as their work lifestyle and
patterns will relate to those working from brick and mortar office
locals. 

Maintaining an updated profile on LinkedIn will allow for interested

parties to find you and reach out for possible job opportunities;
therefore, taking the time to mention every facet of your work
experience becomes an important, yet painstaking task on the
platform.

Presence On Lighter Social Media for Work

Portfolio
Harkening back to days of old, “Gaining bandwidth on social media,
especially on viral platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
will require being aware of recent and popular trending topics.
It may not be intuitive on why commenting on trending topics on Twitter
may help your business; however, doing so with the proper strategy can
expose you to a larger audience.”

Moreso than LinkedIn: Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter will allow for
digital nomads and freelancers to stand and create a useful following.
Each platform caters towards a different demographic, meaning
remaining active on each will allow remote workers with flexibility and
freedom with who their clients are to reach a diverse audience.

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Referencing trending topics will allow you to get a boost of impressions
on each platform. Remember, when I mentioned marketing earlier? View
increased impressions as free marketing for your brand, which
increases work opportunities. 

Yes, crafting posts for each platform will take a small portion of time
out of your day. While that may seem burdensome to a portion of
readers, there are several programs that allow users to schedule posts
on each social media platform.

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Having a following on social media will stand out to clients who would
like to expose their company to a wide audience. If you’re ever able to
read 10,000 followers on any platform, consider yourself in good shape.

Build That Website to Build Work Portfolio

Developing a website of some sort should be in the mind of every digital
nomad and freelancer. While it may not seem important if you have
profiles on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Upwork; it is.
Some clients will want to see how you represent yourself, what you hold
dear, and how professional you are in your own space.

A website doesn’t have to go into extreme detail, but it should highlight

your work experience, accomplishments, and long-term goals. Most
importantly, it should feature a section dedicated to business inquiries,
as some clients will prefer to do business strictly over e-mail. 

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Building a work portfolio doesn’t have to be a draining task, which feels
like a waste of time. Remote workers utilizing the digital sphere, social
media, and a personal website will be able to showcase their abilities
on multiple platforms — providing potential clients with all the
information they could possibly want about you.

Sound fun? Even if it doesn’t, you’ll thank me for this later.

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 Thank you for reading our guide!

We hope these tips, resources and tools will be useful to you and
make your work from home experience a bit less stressful. We will
keep updating this guide to ensure that you have the latest
information to enjoy a fully productive work from home experience.

Did we miss something? Please drop us an email at [email protected] if

you have any questions or suggestions.

We would love to hear from you!

Last updated on April 20, 2020.

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