A significant percentage of people have found that they are able to work more productively while working remotely. While the work-at-home movement may have helped advance productivity, some of that advancement may come at the cost of professionalism. The dynamics of working in a personal environment as opposed to a shared one and addressing new sets of challenges in communications can impact how people perceive one another professionally. Here are some considerations for remote workers about what they can do to maintain professionalism.
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Keep Communications On Point
While you are in a relaxed environment, you may feel overly comfortable in expressing yourself. Try to be conscientious about maintaining a professional tone when you are interacting with anyone about work-related matters.
Of course, certain formalities in communication have naturally relaxed. In some respects, this change is a positive development. It fosters personability and authenticity in interactions that professionals have with supervisors, colleagues, and customers. However, everyone needs to be conscientious about striking a healthy balance.
Connect With Clarity
Remote workers need to bring their A-game to phone calls and face-to-face dialogs in virtual meetings. Make it a point to mitigate background noises in your household as much as possible, even if it requires leaving your workspace to talk.
Ensure that you have excellent connectivity anywhere that you may need to work. Avoid making calls anywhere that you have spotty cell reception. VoIP phones can help people handle work calls at home without reception problems. These VoIP phones typically have outstanding call quality, and connecting over IP may spare you from the interruption and embarrassment of a dropped call on a cell network.
Stay Focused
Compartmentalizing work life and home life is one of many common challenges for individuals who work-from-home. Carrying too many preoccupations with you when you are trying to transition to relaxing at home or spending time with family can feel burdensome. It is important to recognize that the inverse can also be problematic. When you are at home and feeling relaxed, you are less likely to be preoccupied with the urgency of various work situations. Nevertheless, you have to be responsive when colleagues or customers try to touch base with you. Make sure that your work product every day lets people know that you are plugged in and working hard.
Remember that people are evaluating your competencies and character with a few different metrics when you are connecting with them remotely. Ultimately, keeping up appearances will help keep you on the right track towards your career goals.
