Now that most corporate work or traditional desk jobs have shifted to remote positions, the myths of remote work have evolved from the 1990s mindset of questioning if it was effective to an extreme focus on constant availability, which is equally dangerous.
In this episode of the One Next Step Podcast, Tricia Sciortino and I address the myths of remote work, especially for those leading organizations, so leaders can lead well remotely without burning out personally.
Here are some takeaways we shared:
1. Remote work doesn't mean you should always be available.
It’s vital to make a set schedule, just like you would in any office job. When it’s time to work, you work. But when it’s off time, then it’s truly off time.
Spend those hours with your family, taking time for lunch or exercising. Just make sure you aren’t letting your work spill over into your off hours. Working means working and not working means not working—it's as simple as that.
2. Don't work weekends.
Unless it’s a requirement in your industry, let your weekends be your weekends.
Set hard boundaries for you and your team. Everyone should know that it’s not OK to spend time working on Saturday or Sunday.
Because the more you do, the quicker you’ll find yourself burned out. Giving yourself that important time off will keep you fresh and ready to go on Mondays.
When you make sure that you have downtime, you’ll have more energy to dream and create in order to continue growing your business.
3. Even in a remote workplace, you still need to set aside time to meet in person.
Whether you’re all in the same city and can meet once a month, or you’re more spread out and can only meet once a year, it’s important to get occasional face time.
You should trust your team to take care of their own workloads, but setting a weekly meeting is a good practice to become connected and provide guidance or counsel. Your job is to be a coach and a guide for your team members.
This will help build trust, camaraderie, and simply allows you to get a lot more done in a short amount of time.
Check out our new course Managing Remote Teams: A Proven Blueprint To Develop Thriving Employees. For our podcast listeners (and rewrite readers!), we’re offering 40 percent off with the code NEXTSTEP.
Yes, go ahead and copy it now. You’ll be glad you did!