Sean Campbell

Ultimately, anyone working for a remote company needs to figure out how they are going to blend home and work needs. Also this doesn't just involve the employee, in many cases, it also involves having conversations with spouses and other family members (kids, etc.) about what constitutes work vs. home time. After 24 years of working remotely, I can attest to a number of times when I had to set different boundaries for myself and/or family members regarding when / how we could interact during a typical work day. Yet, at the same time that boundary setting also led to enormous opportunities to take advantage of all the amazing flexibility that remote work offers. All of which has been a big plus over these last 24 years.

One of the biggest challenges when working with remote clients is when they "check out." While it's manageable, remote clients/stakeholders can sometimes "ignore" a critical project simply because they might be addressing other concerns "right in front of them" in a physical office setting. This can be easily managed, though, through clear and crisp communication that consistently makes it obvious when you need a remote client or remote set of stakeholders to weigh in on X.

One of the most important things you need to do as a leader / manager in a remote company is to communicate clear expectations for when work should stop and start. And model those behaviors yourself. For example, don't send out emails at 1am if you want folks working a normal schedule. Don't send out a wave of Slack messages on a Saturday if you expect folks are working Monday through Friday. Ultimately you have to realize that the actions you take as a leader/manager are seen as somewhat of a "model" for others to follow. And the more you keep boundries clear for yourself the easier it will be for your team to do the same.

Far too often I find, somewhat disconcertingly I might add, that people seem to be very uncomfortable using a "different" video conferencing tool than what they typically use. So if you're presenting to a company that uses Zoom internally - you better use Zoom (vs. Teams, Google Meet), or else your client / audience will spend 5 minutes figuring out how to log in, 5 minutes figuring out how to unmute themselves, and so on. And the same points are true obviously if Google Meet is the "default", etc. Even though, ultimately, none of these platforms are "hard" to learn. It's simply a matter of muscle memory getting in the way of picking up new skills.

Thinking through how you "sound" is key in remote settings. Audio conveys so much more than a small square of video. Yet, I think far too often people over index on the video part of Zoom calls. Yes, it's important to "look good" on video. But ultimately, people spend more of their time listening to what you're saying - than simply looking at you. So focus on having great crystal clear audio, good variation in your speaking patterns, intonation, etc. And you'll likely grab folks attention (and hold) it way more often.

Ultimately, you have to recognize when you can do your best work. Whether that's at 8am, Noon, or 3pm. And what type of work is best for you at a certain time of day. And that includes recognizing when it's time to just shut the laptop lid and get up early the next day when your brain might just be a bit fresher. In short, sometimes 5 minutes of very productive time - just the next day - can save you three hours of grinding away the day before.