Remote Working Part 2 – Why self discipline is important
The number one reason individuals fail to adjust to operating remotely is they fail to recognise the need for good quality organisation and sustainable self management.
I have been operating remotely for nearly 8 yrs since I first unearthed Quickbooks online an ‘on demand’ small business accounting software online system and was spellbound by the fact that if you can perform accounting online then why shouldn’t it be practical to do other important types of work at a distance?
Whilst working remotely has its obvious perks there are numerous mistakes that people make which turn into problems that result in lower productivity and reduced morale. The key reason for low effectiveness in remote workers is distraction and it is a established and well known fact that it can take a professional up to 0.33 hours to return to their original output level after experiencing an interruption.
Research also shows that members of both sexes who are continuously affected by disruptions are more likely to suffer from lower memory power and are prone to developing mental health problems in later life. We exist in an over communicated world and it is critical that you are acquainted with the problems this causes before you commence working remotely. Whilst working remotely you should do everything possible to eradicate the risk of being interrupted.
Here’s how I do it:
1, Get a consistent schedule, tell everyone about it and rigidly adhere to it!
Good examples are a regular time of day when you read or write and send e-mail and make or take telephone conversatiions. Before I began working remotely I used to get up to a couple of hundred e-mails a day. Now I think I am unfortunate if I get greater than 5. To ‘restart’ my electronic mail experience I changed my e-mail address and tenaciously took steps to defend the details being made known to anyone. I then educated every individual who I gave my e-mail address to, to use it prudently. I also set up an automatic response that swiftly informed anyone sending me mail at what time of day I would be processing mail and if an e-mail needed my immediate awareness to mark it as ‘Urgent’.
2. Get rid of alerts.
Turn off every function that can send you a visual or audible alert. This includes portable and
ordinary telephones and types of alerts from electronic mail such as visual alerts, warning sounds, display changes to your inbox folder and of course facing a window. Get a door on your work room and put up a ‘do not disturb’ sign on it.
In ‘Remote Working Part 3 – Best online software’ I will reveal my favourite tools and software.
Tags:Quickbooks online,small business accounting software
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