More and more people are choosing telecommuting as a way to work from somewhere other than the usual office environment. Having a career that gives you the flexibility to work from your home, hotel room or other remote location is so much easier with the advancements in modern technology. Employment is something that can be sought without even having to leave home in many cases; you can even recruit new staff from your chosen location and of course have the benefit of changing where you work from!
Flexibility Around Other Commitments
There are many barriers that can stop a person/people from going out to find employment including responsibilities at home, disability and transportation. Through telecommuting you really can have it all, be there for your children and work or get into the job you want without having to worry about accessibility if you need wheelchair access or other adaptations that already present in the home.
Not having to commute to and from your job allows you to spend more of your time working than in transit, which can give you more free time. To benefit from this type of employment there are modern trends that you should follow, if you don‘t already.
All-in-One!
Whether you are looking to recruit new staff or communicate with buyers/sellers then you will need to keep in touch by both post, electronically and via fax. Different people use different lines of communication, but that doesn‘t mean that you need so many gadgets in your office that you can barely move around. One piece of equipment your employment success and sanity will thank you for is an all in one device that prints scans, faxes and copies. Look for quality and bear in mind that it‘s your employment venture that is at risk should you choose substandard temperamental equipment.
Better Laptop
If you have chosen to telecommute then the chances are you will want to be able to take your job wherever you go, so having all of your information to hand is extremely important. Choosing a laptop that has more RAM will be a good way to ensure that the device can run all the new apps you’ll need to stay productive. You might consider ordering the laptop with a second hard drive, which can save you from keeping information on external drives. Think of your laptop as part of your workforce, the better it runs the better the productivity.
Fast Internet Speed
With unreliable or slow internet you could find that you get information late, which can affect your job and/or employment opportunity. One of the ways that people stay in touch when out of the office is to use video software such as Skype which can bring a number of people together from all over the world. If you are trying to make a business proposition or even receive one, the person or people on the other end may tire of having to wait for you to catch up and rightfully assume that this will slow down the rate in which you are able to do business. Imagine if you were looking to recruit new clientele and how unprofessional it would look if your internet speed was not up to par.
Any type of advertisement for your job could also be slowed down by slow internet access because you will not have the advantage of being able to send and receive instant messages and could find that upload and download speed are greatly hindered. We live in a world where people like to keep up to date as much as possible in real time, so not being able to keep up with others could hinder employment opportunities and much more!
Portable Landline with Mute and Speaker Functions
Although most people now own a mobile phone, the quality of the reception cannot always be guaranteed. This is why a landline can sometimes be a good backup choice for telephone communication and conference calls. If you are working from home then the chances are you will have distracting noises such as children playing or crying in the background or pet noises. The mute function is excellent for cancelling these out so that the person on the other end of the phone can continue to talk undistracted.
Having two portable landlines is ideal as it means you can have one on charge while the other is in use. The speaker function will be a godsend when you are making or receiving long calls. The last thing you want if you are to sit at a desk for a long period of time is a sore neck from holding the phone in place. It frees your hand so that you can take notes or get on with other tasks too!
Hotspot Mobile Phone
It may not be appropriate to give out your landline number if working from home, or you may want to take calls on the go. A mobile phone will allow you the freedom to answer wherever you are and you can also use it as an alternative to WiFi if you are in an area where is not provided. Having a mobile phone will also allow you to keep up with emails whether you are at home or not and reply in a timely fashion. Modern devices will even allow you to keep your business social networking pages and websites up to date.
Backup Service or Drive
You have worked hard to get where you are, whether research, clients information or your own which is why you won‘t want to lose it should your computer stop working. You can find backup drives that allow you to save your information periodically. This is something you should get into the habit of doing regularly. There are also online services that provide the same backup service and give you the option of backing up information automatically.
Use the Latest Upgrades for your Software
Using upgraded versions of software such as Microsoft Office will allow you to access features that would otherwise not be available, enabling you to create more professional looking documents. Other software such as Adobe Suite will allow you to virtually sign off documents which is extremely useful and professional too!
Remote Support for your Device
Although there are still people that will visit you at your place of work to fix your device, software problems can often be solved remotely. As you don‘t have to use a disc to install most software a remote technician will be able to install necessary software without you having to wait until store opening times or for delivery. In addition to this they can also help your job run smoothly by troubleshooting problems around the clock.
A Supportive Chair
It can seem inviting to resume your employment from your armchair, but it will not help your posture and could lead to bad habits and back pain. Having a seat at a desk will put you in the right position to keep your back healthy to avoid your career being put on hold due to ill health from poor posture. Having a decent office setup looks professional, especially if you are speaking to someone looking to recruit you. Your posture says a lot about you to others so start off on the right path by sitting straight in a supportive chair.
– The Recruit Founders