What do you not like about remote work?
Interview with Cecilia, a content writer managing her remote career in Dubai
The only thing I don't like about it is that working from home often means blurring the lines between personal time and work time. It's a lot harder to disconnect when your office is at home.
Cecilia got her start translating blog posts, and in 2018 she went fully remote. See her tips for managing an international remote work career.
Read full interview from Interview with Cecilia, a content writer managing her remote career in Dubai.
Interview with Pola, a Paris-based content writer
Sometimes you may feel isolated like it’s only you and the laptop.
No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. - John Donne, scholar, and poet
A job ad in an online group led Pola to find her ideal career as a content writer—see her remote work & job seeking takeaways.
Read full interview from Interview with Pola, a Paris-based content writer.
Interview with Audrey, a military wife thriving as a marketing manager
I don’t like the fact that remote-work is still sometimes viewed as ‘less-than’ by people who aren’t familiar with the concept.
It’s 2019, and still, when I tell people I work from home, I get a sideways look; an automatic assumption that I must work for a multi-level-marketing company or am a starving freelancer.
I wish more people could understand how incredibly easy and efficient technology has made working from home, and that there are legitimate, amazing companies that realize its benefits and run flawlessly with a fully-remote team.
As of yet, I have not found a downside to remote work. I can counter almost any argument someone might have about the cons, and I’ve made it my mission to do so.
Some people mention feeling isolated or out of the loop in their remote job, and I’d say that is more a cultural problem than a remote work problem. My company, Boldly, is 100 percent remote and recently won two awards for team happiness and fulfillment (Great Places to Work and When Work Works).
If you have a company who is dedicated to solving any of the challenges remote work brings, you’ll find any negatives seem to melt away. I’ve seen it work. I only advocate for things I believe in - and remote work is always close to the top of the list.
Marrying an active-duty army officer sent Audrey on the search for a remote work position—see how she has established her career while staying on the move.
Read full interview from Interview with Audrey, a military wife thriving as a marketing manager .
Interview with John, an international business writer sharing 15 years of insights
Firstly, the absence of in-person networking in your industry except at occasional conferences.
Day-to-day networking is vital for career progression, and that is, for the most part, lost when remote.
Another challenge that many cite is the isolation that occurs when working remotely. I agree that isolation is a big challenge.
The third challenge I see is being overlooked by clients for additional work opportunities to some degree. For example, in the case of a writer who works remotely, frequently onsite writers will be selected for additional work or more senior roles within an organization.
Sometimes internal resources expand in growing organizations, and your role becomes something that is performed wholly internally and onsite, effectively eliminating it. This situation would not occur if you were onsite.
For over a decade, John has worked as an international business writer. See his insights on the state of remote work, freelancing, and attracting clients who are the right fit.
Read full interview from Interview with John, an international business writer sharing 15 years of insights.
Interview with Tammy, founder and CEO of Workplaceless
The hardest part of working remotely for me is setting clear boundaries between “work time” and everything else.
It’s way too easy to fit in work in the evening or on the weekends, even when I know some things can wait until the following workweek. However, this is not an insurmountable challenge—every week, I get better about setting boundaries.
Learn how this founder and CEO of a remote work resource and certification program handles the triumphs and trails of location independence.
Read full interview from Interview with Tammy, founder and CEO of Workplaceless.
Interview with Vernon, a freelance technical writer
There are really only two aspects of remote freelancing work that I don't like. And those would be the lack of a steady income and lonesomeness.
Being a freelance remote worker is like being any other entrepreneur. You're building a business.
Building a business takes time. It takes time to learn the ropes, to build your reputation and your brand, to learn about the industry and to tweak your product into something that the industry can find useful or valuable.
I have full confidence that the more I work at these things and the better I get at marketing myself and networking the more my income will improve and become more reliable.
Working remote freelance is nothing like working in a local office or for a local company. You don't have coworkers you can discuss projects with face to face or converse with by the coffee machine.
You won't have the same opportunities for after-work hangouts (granted, as a freelancer you can still try to arrange something like that but it's more complicated).
And you won't be surrounded by the hustle, bustle, and energy of a typical office environment (unless you're working in a shared space or coworking space) which some people can feed off of or be inspired by.
Having said that, for me, these positive characteristics of the typical work environment are easily sacrificed for the benefits of remote freelancing.
Vernon is a freelance software technical writer that uses lists to organize his hectic freelance schedule—see how he maximizes his time throughout the workday.
Read full interview from Interview with Vernon, a freelance technical writer .
Interview with Lauren, a content marketing team lead and hybrid remote worker
Lack of human interaction. Though I love my dog, he can’t always give me the deep conversations a human could. And I actually love my office and my coworkers, so I wouldn’t ever want to stay away TOO often.
For Lauren, remote work was a non-negotiable arrangement—see how she manages a hybrid remote work situation and her tips for those on the remote job search.
Read full interview from Interview with Lauren, a content marketing team lead and hybrid remote worker.
Interview with Alyssa, a copywriter and content strategist
Communication can be tough. As much as we all like to believe we're more connected than ever, sometimes it can take a while to get the information you need. Remote workers can't just walk into someone's office and ask a question; we rely on messaging tools and email.
Alyssa has found her rhythm as a freelancer and founder of the blog, Freelancing Flow—see her tips for keeping it all running smoothly.
Read full interview from Interview with Alyssa, a copywriter and content strategist .
Interview with Laurent, an introverted remote worker & engineer
There's obviously less social interaction with my coworkers. I can't have lunch with them every day, etc.
But while you can't have lunch with your coworkers every day, you can enjoy lunch with your family.
So while I love my coworkers, I still prefer to work remotely and spend more time with my family 😉.
In this interview, this VP of engineering shares his strategies for managing family time and organizing meetings as an introvert.
Read full interview from Interview with Laurent, an introverted remote worker & engineer.
Interview with Kati, a co-founder shares her tips for juggling multiple side hustles
I've worked with companies that insist on daily meetings/stand-ups, check-ins, and daily lists of work accomplished. One of the reasons I like remote work is the autonomy and fewer interruptions because having to stop working to check-in isn't my favorite thing to do. Also, it makes people feel like they can't be trusted.
Kati has made a career at using the internet and gig economy to her advantage—see how she successfully manages multiple side hustles and a business.
Read full interview from Interview with Kati, a co-founder shares her tips for juggling multiple side hustles.