Remote work COVID-19 +B33es, facial expressions and eye gazes, that might indicate a disconnect. Plus, it helps you feel more connected to your team if you can talk virtually face-to-face. Continue whiteboarding and using sticky notes virtually with rich collaboration tools such as Miro, Retrium or Ideaboardz. All three tools are good choices that can help you visualize work, brainstorm and collaborate despite the distance.
Be patient with glitching internet connections. Bandwidth is going to be pushed harder than ever before, and home internet services may not be equipped to handle the influx. If bandwidth gets choppy, try double-checking other household devices to make sure they aren’t hogging the bandwidth: Stop streaming games or movies on other devices, and shut down programs that use a lot of bandwidth, at least while the video conferencing is going on.
Overcoming Human Struggles
Loneliness is a real struggle for many remote workers. We suggest creating a virtual Community of Practice for socializing and water cooler talk. Depending on the number of attendees, you can do this via video or group chat, but video is always preferred because it is closest to chatting in person. We recommend conducting this CoP once a week for 20-30 minutes.
Maintain the same level of personal hygiene and etiquette you would practice in a traditional office setting. Get dressed for the day, at least from waist up, and avoid revealing clothes or sleepwear. And don’t forget to practice regular hygiene because, believe it or not, you are more up close and personal on a webcam than when you are in person. So, if you haven’t done the needful things after waking up, it may be evident on camera. Plus, maintaining your getting ready for work‚ routine creates a sense of normalcy and shifts your mindset to work mode: According to a study in Social Psychological and Personality Science, dressing for the job increases abstract thinking, which is associated with creativity and long-term strategizing.
Cameras should be on and every participant face should be shown. This helps to be courteous to one another, improves remote communication, and brings more focus to the conversation.
Take breaks and walk outside. Exercise social distancing as needed, but make sure you get out of the house and breathe fresh air for 5-10 minutes several times a day. If going outside is not practical, stretch or do mild physical exercise to get your blood pumping.
Remote work has its benefits, but it requires a bit of planning and effort to start off on the right foot. Motivus Transform practice uses these techniques daily, and we teach our clients who have distributed teams to do them effectively. And with our scaled agile-first delivery, both onshore and nearshore, we can help you navigate this challenging time and implement a remote team without sacrificing work quality.
Contact us to learn how we can help you today.
