3 Tips for Working In A Flexible Working Environment

Like it or not, the flexible work environment is here to stay. What I have learned over the past couple of years is that working remotely as a young professional in a fast-paced work environment is a skill that needs to be learned alongside all the standard job duties. Today, I'm going to share with you three tips that will help you be more effective in flexible (remote) work environments.

#1 - Over-Communicate About Your Working Status

Because you are no longer in an office environment where people can see you struggling with work or clearly see that you are out to lunch, you need to go out of your way to make it clear to your coworkers where you are and if you need help. The best employees in my workplace utilize the workplace messenger application (Slack, Teams, Google Chat) and the integrated status messages to let others know when they might be available for work or need help with something. This trick is also especially helpful when working with people across the world that may take lunches at different times.

#2 - Set Your Schedule and Block Your Calendar

Now that people are working from home more often it's much more common to see co-workers with other obligations such as picking up their kids or walking their dogs. Best practice for these types of activities is putting a block on your calendar with a recurring meeting to tell your coworkers that you will not be available at that time. By doing this you will hopefully not have any meetings scheduled when you need to take care of some personal business. Once you set up your schedule this way, it is important to remember tip #1, which is to over-communicate. Be sure to remind your managers or direct co-workers of your personal obligations.

#3 - Call Up Your Coworkers

The number one thing people are missing about the traditional work environment is the casual interactions they could have with coworkers. Before the pandemic, it was easy to sit down in a break room or pass by someone's desk and learn a little bit about their lives. While some might see this as a waste of time, the interaction with coworkers helps build empathy and relationships that drive efficiencies in the workplace. Because you are no longer bound to an office, you need to go out of your way to develop relationships with your coworkers, especially the ones that you don't interact with as a part of your job.

If you aren't doing these things already, try them! Tips like these can make or break your remote working experience. And as working remotely becomes more common, you will need to dedicate more effort to developing these skills that help you work better in flexible working environments.