Maintaining Momentum and Productivity with Remote Work

The coronavirus disease has change our lifestyles and how we do business. Health and government officials are encouraging businesses to shut down temporarily or have employees work from home. While most employees are now working remotely, most of them are doing their best to adjust to the new lifestyle.

Working remotely means fewer ways to interact with your colleagues, more distraction and isolation. And all these can lead to a decline in productivity. To overcome all these challenges effectively, managers need to collaborate with their employees and come up with ways to connect with them regularly. How can you improve your productivity while working remotely? Here are a few practical tips.

1. Equip your team with the best tools

One of the best ways to improve the productivity of your team while working remotely is to equip them with the best tools. These tools include project management apps, messaging and chatting apps and video conferencing apps such as Google Hangouts and Zoom. Equipping your team with new technologies will help you stay on the same page with them. Plus, being connected with your colleagues will make your work easier and thus boost your productivity.

2. Have a dedicated workspace

According to college papers, most remote workers don’t have a dedicated workspace at home for a lot of reasons. When the entire world was forced to work remotely due to the pandemic, bedrooms, couches and kitchens became home offices. While this may work for a while, it is important for you to have a dedicated workspace if you want to improve your productivity.

The more communal your space is, the more the distractions will be present. And this will negatively affect your concentration. Focus on making your space as comfortable as you can. Working on the bed or the couch for long hours will not only lead to fatigue but also a decline in productivity. As a manager, you should emphasize on the need to have a dedicated workspace free from distractions. Whenever possible, provide the necessary resources to help your team have a dedicated workspace.

3. Set realistic expectations

Working remotely is a unique experience for everyone. You can boost the productivity of your team through effective management and the adoption of effective strategies. Setting realistic expectations for your employees will help them achieve their goals and objectives easily.

Setting realistic expectations will help them build momentum that’s necessary for achieving daily goals. Prioritize and share your expectations. Ensure that everyone is on the same page with you. By setting realistic and achievable goals, you’ll boost the productivity and performance of your team.

4. Check in regularly

While working remotely, face to face chats and meetings will be non-existent. A daily check-in routine is a great alternative for face to face chats. Checking in with your team regularly will help you prioritize and build long-lasting connections.

You can choose to check-in with your team in the morning through video chat, phone call or instant message. While it will feel different and awkward at first, forming this habit will increase your chances of success. Once the habit is in place, all you’ll have to do is encourage your team to keep up. Balance the tools and mediums that you use to check-in.

5. Provide emotional support

Working from home can lead to loneliness, negative thoughts and emotions. Managers should do everything they can to provide emotional support to their employees. Leaders have to set the tone of the day with a calm, positive and lively presence. If all your employees are working remotely on a full-time basis, you need to check-in and ask them questions frequently. Set the team’s working hours and always be there for them throughout the day.

Encourage your team to take good care of themselves. Encourage your employees to get quality sleep, exercise, take showers and eat nutritional foods.

6. Create time for non-work interactions

Since your team members will be working away from each other, there will be little or no in person interactions. Since employees may become stressed, anxious and depressed because of spending a lot of time alone, it is important to create time for them to interact. Let them talk about their hobbies and topics that don’t relate to work.

Such interactions not only relieve stress but also help in building bonds. Most businesses are performing well today because they create time for such interactions every day or week. While such efforts appear small, they add up with time and pay off in spades.

Conclusion

Most businesses are thriving with their employees working remotely as a result of adopting these simple and practical tips. Opening the channels of communication and encouraging your team members to voice their opinions will help you solve complex problems and boost productivity and performance. Which tip are you going to use today to boost your productivity as you work remotely?