#challengesofremotework

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[addymoran-blog]

Working Remotely

I've worked fully remote for the last 5 months and then 50% or more remote for the last 2.5 years. Remote work can be both helpful and hurtful for the work life balance and at times it is difficult to stay motivated. Here are some of the things I've learned so far to make working remotely easier: 

Finding Your Work Space I am an odd combination of introverted and extroverted. Where I am most productive when I’m working alone with head phones in, in a loud coffee shop. Something about being around other people but not interacting with them, I can put my head down and work on the same software program for 12+ hours. If I'm at home I get to spend time with my zoo but it's easy for my mind to drift and the day to creep by. Being out of the house for a few days a week also helps with the work life balance. I’ve noticed it’s hard to relax in the same area that I work (so having a dedicated home office is ideal if you don’t like coffee shops or libraries).

Use the Tools You Love  I get more motivated to work when I get to use the tools that I love. For example, I'm a Mac girl, where if I’m programming Python, Full Stack, or Java in Sublime, and writing up documentation in LaTex, MarkDown, or AsciiDoctor I'm in my happy place. Picky, but there is something to be said about getting the flexibility to work in a way that makes you most productive. From a business perspective this can be tough. During my work experience, I've been forced to use a Windows laptop and either PuTTY into a Linux host or have an entirely separately laptop that has Linux on it with little variety of text editors. This can be a cost effective option, if you do it right, but allows little flexibility for software engineers.

Work During Your Optimal Times Knowing your most productive time during the day can be an art form in and of it self. For instance, I seem to be the most productive when I program between 0630 and 1400 and then I like having meetings after that. I believe companies are getting more flexible, where they allow you to work when you are most productive but still have quality communication skills and processes, allowing the early birds to work with the night owls. That being said, I’d suggest putting a lot of thought into your schedule and sticking to it. Working from home, it is easy to allow your schedule to slip, but boundaries can be hard to keep while working remotely and I believe it makes the work life balance more stressful and harder to maintain if you consistently work very early or very late (or both).  

Split the Love and Hate It can be difficult to stay motivated if you aren’t enjoying the tasks you are working on. If possible try to split the things you love with the things you dislike to keep your motivation up. If this isn’t possible, try to take a different perspective and look at the distasteful tasks as learning opportunities. 

So far, I’ve enjoyed working remotely but there are some difficulties as well. If you get the opportunity to work remotely, I’d suggest going for it but make sure you push for what makes you most productive.