Remote Work From Home Archives

The Importance of Leadership

by Angela Copeland | Jun 6, 2022 | Career Corner Column, Newsletter, Remote Work From Home

Remote work is a perk that has exploded since the pandemic began. Prior to 2020, a remote job was a unique find. Today, it has become the norm for many jobs. But, working from home has introduced challenges related to human connection. And, leadership has never been more important.

It’s funny. Prior to the pandemic, I knew much more about my coworkers, and I bet you did too. I had seen photos of their families. I knew the kinds of cars they drove. I had a good sense if they were morning people, and whether or not they liked coffee. These are details you learn in person.

Remotely, these details are lost. And, so is the connection. Many interactions become far more transactional than before. Gone are the days of chatting over your cube wall to the person next to you. Gone are the watercooler chats.

The other area that has changed is how we interact with our leaders. In the past, it was not unusual to talk with your manager at least once a day. You’d likely have a one-on-one meeting once a week. You would also see them in other scheduled meetings. But, even more importantly, you’d have casual conversations.

The casual conversations were the most important ones. They were the ones where creative ideas would come together. They were the times you would work together to solve big problems that popped up. And, most importantly, it’s where you’d build a real relationship with them. You might learn about their family, and they’d learn about yours. You’d become work friends in a way. These sort of interactions are where mutual trust and respect are formed. It’s where loyalty and common purpose are developed.

Trust and respect are the foundation of any good working relationship. They’re the reason why you keep getting your job done, even when the boss isn’t looking over your shoulder. It’s why your boss can count on you to keep the lights on while they’re on vacation.

But, what happens when these personal interactions begin to dwindle? What happens when the personal relationship fades away? I would argue that work becomes more transactional. Work becomes something you are simply bartering your time for in exchange for a paycheck. And, like any consumer in a store, you’ll looking for the best deal. You’ll want to put in the least amount of effort for the most amount of money.

To the leaders who aren’t taking the time to connect to your team, their work is suffering. It may not be clear today, but someday this pattern will catch up with you. They may be producing less work than they could. They may be producing lower quality work. Or, they may have no hesitation to leave when another job opportunity arises.

Remote work requires you to do more than to control those who work for you. It requires you to lead – more now than ever before.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Also, be sure to subscribe to my Copeland Coaching Podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher where I discuss career advice every Tuesday! If you’ve already heard the podcast and enjoy it, please consider leaving a review in iTunes or Stitcher.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

Life is Your Resume

by Angela Copeland | Jun 22, 2021 | Career Corner Column, Indeed.com, Newsletter, Remote Work From Home, Work From Home

Indeed.com hosted Indeed Interactive last week. But, there was one very notable difference: it was held online. The conference not only talked about employment over the last year, but it mirrored many of our experiences.

By video, Indeed’s labor economists Pawel Adrjan and Daniel Culbertson gave their predictions for the future of work. They focused on work from home, sharing that, over the last year many people have gone through a work from home experiment.

Job postings on Indeed.com with some mention of working from home has continued to grow, even beyond the worst parts of the pandemic. In fact, there was a rise in postings that mention remote work between Q4 of 2020, and Q1 of 2021. From early 2020 to now, job postings mentioning work from home have more than tripled.

On the employee side, job seeker interest in remote work remains high. Indeed is able to measure the interest in remote work by the searches on their site. From early 2020 to now, job seeker searches for remote work have more than doubled.

What happens after the COVID pandemic is over? Indeed looked in areas where cases of COVID have been low, and economies have reopened. They found that interest in remote work remained high, even after an economic recovery. They believe this represents a shift in long term preferences. Job seekers will continue to demand remote work, even after the completion of the pandemic.

But, do employers intend for work from home to be permanent or temporary? Indeed found that in the UK, 61 percent of remote job postings were listed as temporarily remote. Companies expect employees to eventually come in person. This also means that 39 percent of jobs posted as remote will be permanently remote. This is an increase from pre-pandemic. In other words, we have realized that remote work is sustainable long term.

Gayle King also interviewed actor Matthew McConaughey about his career. He shared the challenge of pivoting careers, and going all in when you’re trying something new.

McConaughey also shared that your “life is your resume.” There is no one defining moment. You are all of the pieces of your combined experience. And, he felt the pandemic has brought him closer to the things in life that are most important to him.

McConaughey is now able participate in video meetings in three countries in the morning, and then have lunch with his wife and children at his home in Texas. Remote work has created a new culture. It is no longer rude to have a video call. It’s a necessity. And, this necessity has allowed him to prioritize the things that are truly the most important to him.

The takeaway for hiring managers is this. In order to remain competitive, you must consider flexible work environments. Remote work will be more prevalent and will remain attractive to job seekers. This flexibly is what you’re now competing against.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

Remote Employee Monitoring

by Angela Copeland | Jun 1, 2020 | Career Corner Column, Coronavirus, Newsletter, Remote Work From Home

Have you ever felt micromanaged at work? If your boss doesn’t know what you’re doing for every moment of the day, you might as well be nonexistent. You definitely couldn’t be working or making logical, sound decisions on your own, using your years of expertise. Having someone looking over your shoulder always seems to make me more productive. Wouldn’t you agree?

No way! For most people, micromanagement is one of the most demotivating things ever. If you want your employees to only work while you babysit them (and to constantly be on the lookout for another job), then micromanage away. But, if you want people who are thoughtful, hardworking, and will go the extra mile for you, trust your employees.

There’s a new trend that is quite frankly, disturbing. Did you now that some companies are monitoring their employees remotely through their computers? This technology existed before. But, since the pandemic, companies are making the news for their monitoring practices. And, the worst part is, many aren’t telling their employees.

The employee-monitoring software employers are using can take photos of what you’re working on. They can look at which websites you’re visiting. Using your phone, they can even detect where you went during the day. The software reports out on an employee’s usage in small increments, looking at how much time the employee spent typing or using the computer mouse. The New York Times recently reported that employee-monitoring company Hubstaff has seen their sales triple since the pandemic began in March.

Is this really what work is supposed to be about? Whatever happened to salaried employees being expected to “get the job done” whether it took thirty hours or sixty hours? What about employees in creative fields that may find their most productive time in smaller bursts? Many people agree that depending on the type of work you do, it’s not a consistent flow of productivity. We aren’t machines after all.

What about jobs that center around phone calls that are not hooked directly into your work computer? What about those people like me who like to use, dare I say it, paper? What about people who print documents out to review them? Or those who work their thoughts out in a notepad?

This state of being monitored is really too much. Companies need to get back to the basics with their leadership skills and mentoring. I have rarely met an employee who doesn’t want to pull their own weight at a company that treats them with respect. And, when a company does not respect them or their work, getting great results is next to impossible.

If you’re a company executive who is considering this software, think of other ways to measure productivity and success. Secret software monitoring is not the way to go. We’ve really gotten off the path if we think some artificial productivity score applied equally to all employees is meaningful or motivating.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

Work From Anywhere

by Angela Copeland | May 25, 2020 | Career Corner Column, Coronavirus, Newsletter, Remote Work From Home

We can all agree, this pandemic has been horrific. Regardless of how much or how little you were impacted, you were impacted. You probably spent more time inside your own four walls at home than you ever imagined. And, you may have learned to work from home, while balancing your spouse, pets, and kids – all at the same time.

Eventually, our children will go back to school. Our spouses will go back to work. Stores will reopen. We’ll all be able to get a haircut and find toilet paper with more ease.

But, I’m not convinced that the job market will be quite the same in the future. This is the thing. If you’ve been working remotely, you’ve been doing it for over two months now. Two months! And, if you’re able to do your job from home, you (and the management at your company) may be surprised that it’s actually working.

Working from home is not a total failure. It’s a learning opportunity. The entire world is learning how to operate a little differently. And, in that there is potentially a silver lining. Some companies are considering becoming a remote company going forward. For example, Twitter announced that they will allow employees to permanently work from home. And, Facebook said they will let some of their employees work from anywhere.

If you’re job searching, you are probably looking in the city that is the closest to where you live. And, this makes sense. But, as you keep looking, I’d encourage you to expand your possibilities. Look for jobs at companies that are beginning to let their employees work from home permanently.

If you’re not sure which companies are doing this, a good place to start is the news. This is a new concept for many companies, so the ones switching are making headlines. Then, search on sites like LinkedIn for jobs. But, instead of putting your local city into the search box, use the word “remote.” That’s the way many job sites work when it comes to looking for a work from home job.

But, do your homework in advance. Facebook has announced that they may pay workers less who choose to live in cheaper cities. But, very often, in the world of technology, smaller markets must pay a premium to get highly specialized employees. Living in a less expensive market doesn’t always mean a smaller paycheck. Sites like Glassdoor.com will give you a sense for how much companies are paying for specific roles. Be informed about your market value before your first phone interview.

This pandemic may open a door for us when it comes to work. We’ve been forced into this test. And, we’ve learned that in some industries, working from home is not only possible, it’s more effective. This will be even more true once the kids all finally go back to school. That’s when the real productivity will happen.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

Working from Home

by Angela Copeland | Apr 6, 2020 | Career Corner Column, Newsletter, Remote Work From Home, Work From Home

Working from home always sounded like a dream. It was this amazing concept that you heard about on TV that people in California did. You always wished you could try for a few days a week.

I guess this is what they mean when they say, “be careful what you wish for.” Here we are working from home, playing from home, schooling from home, and everything else-ing from home. At least there’s no commute. But, working from home isn’t as great when it’s not a choice.

But, let’s try to make the best of it. We may be here for a while. So, what can you do to effectively work at home?

For starters, find a space that you can designate for work. If you’re lucky, you may have an office or an extra bedroom. Or, you may want to designate a space like your dining room table. If you have a house with a garage, you may even want to temporarily turn your garage into an office. This is the time to get creative.

Once you’ve found your space, set it up. At a minimum, you’ll likely need a table, a desk, and your computer. If you have them, a printer and an external monitor can also be very helpful. Keep your office supplies nearby, including paper, pens, headphones, and anything else you may need. Take the time to set up your new home office in a way that is enjoyable to you. You will be spending a lot of time there.

After you setup your home office, it’s time to use it. Start out by creating a schedule for yourself. One of the most important components to successfully working from home is routine. Try to start working at the same time every day. Set aside time to eat lunch, and possibly for breaks. And, finish at a reasonable time. Try not to spend every waking hour sitting and working, as this could lead to burnout.

Look for ways to stay connected to colleagues. One of our biggest hurdles when working from home is how to stay relevant at work without being too much. In other words, without sending too many emails or making too many phone calls. Over time, work to develop a routine. Try to stay in touch with coworkers and management without wasting time, but while still creating a human connection.

Don’t forget to ask how people are really doing. When you open up, you’ll learn that your coworkers are just as stressed and as afraid as you are. They’re also trying to figure out how to keep their spouse, pets, and kids out of their workspace. They’re also worried about their parents. They’re also running low on toilet paper.

Working from home is an adjustment, even under normal circumstances. Virtual companies share that it takes months for working from home to become normal and routine. You’re in good company.

I hope these tips have helped you. Visit CopelandCoaching.com to find more tips to improve your job search. If I can be of assistance to you, don’t hesitate to reach out to me here.

Happy hunting!

Angela Copeland
@CopelandCoach

Bonus Episode | Work From Home: Coping with Coronavirus

by Angela Copeland | Mar 27, 2020 | Coronavirus, Mental Health, Podcast, Remote Work From Home

Hello everyone! This is Angela. I hope you’re hanging in there. The last few weeks have been tough, and it’s unclear when things may look up. If you’re like many people, you’re working from home for the first time.

I’m releasing a bonus episode today to answer some of your questions about how to work from home during the Coronavirus quarantine. I’m also sharing my tips on how to take care of yourself during this time — and what to do if you’re in the middle of a job search.

I hope you enjoy it. If you have additional questions I can answer on a future episode, please send me a message.

Stay safe, and best wishes,

Angela