How to work from home: The benefits of working remotely 💻

For many businesses, even a couple of decades ago, working remotely would have been nearly impossible.

Without the right technology, an employee had to go to the office to get their work done.

Having a flexible schedule can be beneficial in a variety of ways, for example if you need to make an appointment, have children to look after or even if you work more efficiently in the mornings or evenings and want to mix up the 9-5 schedule, flexible working allows you to do so.

Particularly if you have a long commute, travelling around can be expensive.

By working from home you will be saving money on petrol, or car parking costs, train or bus expenses around the city.

Also, we all know how tempting and easy it is to grab a quick meal deal at lunch, but this adds up and before you know it, a chunk of your income has gone.

Have a think about how you could use the money you save wisely?

We are all used to hearing about the dreaded commute, so one of the biggest benefits of working remotely from home, is the time you will save commuting to work.

The average daily commute in Britain took 59 minutes in 2019.

With nearly an hour extra time to spend in the day, we had a little think about some working from home tips and how to use this spare time productively (scroll down to the last section in this article to find out more)…

Another of the great advantages of working from home, is being in your own space. This enables you to find the best way to work remotely, in a setting that suits you. You might find it better to work in silence and focus during set hours, or to listen to background music to keep you feeling positive. If you are used to working in a busy, noisy office, you might find that you can focus more on making calls, attending online meetings and concentrating in a quiet environment.

However, it’s important that you don’t get too comfortable. To be the most productive in your home office, you need to carve out a working zone from the rest of your home, where you can focus, and satisfy your work needs.

If it has proven to be impossible for you to have a dedicated workspace, and you’ve found yourself remotely working for an indefinite time, you should think about investing in home additions, which you can turn into your own functional and cozy workspace.

Another benefit of working remotely is that you are not restricted by a dress code.

This might save you time spent choosing a suitable outfit for work, dressing for the weather, or dressing to impress work colleagues!

Bare in mind, however, while working from home, productivity can be increased by choosing to get dressed instead of lounging around in pyjamas all day.

You can avoid the dreaded ‘rush hour’ and not have to worry about getting delayed on the Northern Line.

If you’ve got an important interview or early morning meeting, then you won’t need to worry about getting stuck in traffic, trains being cancelled or the bus not turning up, which can all cause unnecessary stress.

The flexibility of remote working, means that employees are able to stay within the same job role, even if their personal circumstances change.

For example, if an individual was to move to a different city, they would still be able to carry out their duties working from home.

Being flexible in remote working opportunities is a great way for employers to retain staff, reduce employee turnover and ultimately save money in the long-term.

Find more tips on how to retain your employees.

Remote working in the UK has shown to statistically be favoured by employees, being one of the most important company benefits for 19% of employees, who say that if they were torn between two roles, 1 in 5 individuals would accept the remote working jobs over office based jobs.

This allows employers to select the very best candidates. Some businesses have the ability to recruit individuals from anywhere in the world, opening up their doors to a far larger pool of talent to choose from.

Whether this is you or not, remote working options can be an excellent way to attract new talent.

If you are interested in remote hiring, please get in touch today and find out how we can help you grow your team.

Office environments can often be noisy with lots of distractions, which can lead to a lack of productivity and concentration issues for some staff.

You are also likely to see fewer excuses to be late for work, as delayed public transport is the biggest culprit of this.

Remote onboarding tools can be used to train employees on how to work from home, to ensure they are efficient and productive.

Mental health is currently the leading cause of sickness absence from work and costs UK employers an average of £1300 per employee.

Taking time off from work, or having the flexibility to work remotely is a great way to boost the work/life balance for employees which will lead to better mental well-being in the workplace.

There are financial benefits of remote working too, with fewer overhead costs eliminating the need for office space and other resources in the workplace, such as any equipment, kitchen facilities, furniture or utilities.

You may also reduce the need to expense any travel or commuting costs too.

Having a flexible schedule can be beneficial to your employees for many reasons, including reducing stress and increasing happiness.

Remote workers with children may find it useful to have time to pick their children up from school, others may live far away and benefit from extra time at home instead of commuting.

If you manage your employees well by being flexible, then your employees are more likely to be flexible when you need them to be as well.

A big concern around remote working jobs may be motivation.

Not having the encouragement of your colleagues working near you may be seen as one of the disadvantages of working from home, as it can be difficult for some to stay motivated.

Try to ensure you continue to update co-workers on your progress throughout the day, making sure your goals align with the rest of your team.

This can particularly be an issue if you work from home alone, without housemates or family.

Having regular virtual meetings, over the phone or video calls, are a great way to ensure you continue to have some social interactions, while keeping up to date with what your co-workers are doing (both work and non-work related!)

One of the best tips for working from home effectively is to map out your day.

Making a plan of your day, and getting into the habit of waking up at a certain time, taking regular breaks and switching off during your lunch break.

Do you have the tools and software you need on your laptop?

Is your internet connection fast enough?

Do you need a second monitor screen to work more efficiently?

In this day and age, particularly in a tech or IT based job role, a second monitor is the gift that keeps on giving. If you are planning on working from home indefinitely, then it may be worth investing in these tools and resources, or asking your employer if these things are something they can provide you with.

The downside to these technological advances? Learning when to switch off.

It can be very easy, particularly when working from home, to continue to work into the evening, which can have a negative impact on your mental well-being.

Make sure you still finish work on time, shut down your laptop or desktop and put your phone down for some chill time in the evenings.