Remote Working Part 1 – Beginners guide (Overview)

Obviously not all of us is able to work remotely as some vocations require employees to go to their office or travel to perform their tasks in person. But for those of us are allowed to work remotely then I thought it would be useful to share what I have learned and present some practical directions by distributing it online with the sole objective of providing helpful shortcuts for adapting to remote working or supervising remote workers.

I would caution you that there are a lot of self proclaimed ‘gurus’ out there who will try and make you purchase online education for substantial sums of money, trust me you don’t have to do this.

I am lucky enough to be allowed to work in whatever location I choose and just about everyone who asks me what work I do wants to get an idea of how I manage to work remotely. Don’t be fooled here I am still improving the art of remote working as everyday I discover people on the web who tell me about new tricks and I am constantly unearthing new software and ways that make my life easier and make me more effective.

Throughout the past 7 years I have significantly adapted my working practices to enable me to do the whole of my work remotely with a selection of internet tools and rigid self discipline. One lunchtime whilst searching the web I uncovered Quickbooks online and this made me aware of what just might be possible. The encounter with online ‘on demand’ small business accounting software was a significant event for me and the launch pad of my ‘remote working career.

I have got to state up front that proficiently working remotely is as much about the software as it is about self management. Working remotely also means educating your colleagues, supervisors and customers as to what they can expect and how they will maintain contact with you.

In ‘Remote Working Part 2 – Self discipline essentials’ I discuss how to focus.