Did you know that the number of people who work remotely has grown by 400% since the year 2010?
In just 10 years, we’ve seen exponential growth in the remote working world. It’s reported that more than half of in-office or on-premises employees want the option to work remotely.
With benefits such as less traveling time, lower costs, and better time management, remote working is a viable option for many. But when working remotely, there is one thing that is absolutely fundamental to your success: being able to communicate effectively!
Keep reading to learn how to communicate effectively while working remotely.
Table of Contents
Invest In Software
When it comes to working remotely, there are countless pieces of software and a variety of technology solutions that can streamline your communications.
Investing in the right software will enable you to keep regular contact with your team through multiple channels. Depending on your function or job description, there are collaborative software products that give you the ability to communicate through text, voice, imagery, and video.
It’s largely dependant on the culture of yourself, and your team, and how you want to maintain contact. Some teams prefer an instant conference call as a solution to communication obstacles, whilst others may prefer to have a channel-based messaging platform such as Slack.
Plan For Challenges
Inevitably you’ll find yourself faced with some communication challenges as you adapt to the remote working environment. The foundation for effective communication is being prepared.
What we mean here is, ensure that you have set yourself a proper workstation and that you’re prepared for almost any scenario. Things like noise-canceling earphones can help if you’re going to be on loads of video conferences, and set yourself up a task board that you can visually layout your deliverables for the week and month ahead.
This will help you plan for effective communication with your team as you’re able to see things visually with one glance.
Setup Regular Check-In Meetings
It may seem counter-productive to have too many meetings scheduled but we guarantee you that hosting regular check-in meetings will aid in effective communication.
These meetings don’t have to be long-winded, and they also don’t have to be held more than once a week. A great idea is to host a check-in session with all team members at the beginning or end of each week. Have a topics discussion ready, and simply reflect on the week past and the week to come.
Keep Things Exciting
A great tip is to keep proposals and presentations as visually pleasing and entertaining as possible. Effective communication can be achieved by making learning and collaborating fun.
Keep your pitches, proposals, and presentations as visual as possible so that they’re not overflowing with boring text. This will really encourage your team to jump on board and get excited about new projects and concepts.
Communicate Effectively With Your Team
To be able to communicate effectively as a remote worker, you’ll need your team to be onboard and buying into your ‘office’. You should try to create a culture of open and honest communication for all team members.
Executive or high-level team members should also be available as much as possible or clarification during working hours. This will encourage remote workers to truly engage in communication with their managers and team members.
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