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Five Best Practices Before Starting Your Remote Work

Five Best Practices Before Starting Your Remote Work

Working from home is not entirely different from reporting to an office far from your place. You perform the same tasks and coordinate with the similar group of people in your company. This also implies that even your productivity should not have any disparity despite the change in your location. You are still expected to deliver results and ensure efficiency daily.

Did you know what you do prior to starting your shift could affect your overall performance in your job? This is why it is fairly imperative that you develop a routine that will make sure to help you get the best out of your skills during your work.

To help you with the aforementioned matter, provided below are some best practices before starting your remote work:

Get enough sleep. Sleep would always be a crucial part of anyone’s lives, even in terms of work. Without getting enough rest, you would not have the energy to accomplish your tasks well. It may also impair your health, making you incapable of working at all.

According to The Cost of Poor Sleep: Workplace Productivity Loss and Associated Costs, a study in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, an employee’s productivity is reduced due to sleep deprivation.

Also, without proper sleep, your reaction time may likely be affected, making a simple task of responding quickly in a conversation difficult for you.

Exercise. If you are a person who got used to sitting for hours during work, exercise is definitely what you need. Being stagnant will never give you either work or health benefits.

Moreover, in the journal Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, a study by researcher Tim Puetz and Patrick O’Connor showed that exercising could boost your energy levels and decrease fatigue, which is highly helpful before working. Instead of having energy drinks or coffee, you might as well resort to exercise, which is not only beneficial to your body, but also to your mind.

Listen to music. To relax your mind before starting your shift, maybe some music would keep you in check. It could boost your mood and make you feel better before reporting. This could make you feel more motivated to carry out your tasks.

Music and work have long been associated in different studies. One study in 1995 showed that the employees’ work performance of a large retail organization improved significantly when they were allowed to listen to personal stereos for four weeks. This is in comparison to those who were not permitted to do so.

According to most researchers, music makes employees feel calm and focused. This is also probably the reason why some employers allow their workers to listen to music during work. This privilege has long been associated with better productivity.

Eating a healthy meal. It is always best to make sure your body is nourished with nutrients prior to working. Though many were used to simply having a cup of coffee to start their day at work, this may not be helpful to you.

A study in the British Journal of Health Psychology stated that people who eat more fruits and vegetables would benefit their mind. You will be more creative and more engaged at work. Moreover, your mood will be lifted, which is a great perk to anyone.

Preparing in advance. This practice should always be a part of a remote worker’s routine since it could affect how your day would start. If you prepare your workspace at the last minute before your shift, you would likely waste much of your time instead of getting on your priorities right away.

Making sure your resources are set properly is one way of avoiding delays. One good example is the possible update of your PC or laptop. If you would open it early on, you would not be delayed for a few minutes or hours before working. Virtual assistants, who get caught up by automatic updates, suffer late accomplishment of work and missed meetings.

With the provided practices, you would definitely have a better day at work. Remember, it is all about how you design your routine. Do not let any poor habit keep you from performing your job effectively. Plus, the given tips above are mostly beneficial to your health. Hence, you will win remarkably in many ways just by following them.

Initiative and the Different Ways of Showing It

Initiative and the Different Ways of Showing It

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One question you should ask yourself if you are planning to improve your work performance is, “Do I have initiative?” Many virtual assistants may be skillful, but not all of them could have the initiative in many situations in the workplace. Some may give you useful business material, but cannot be relied on whenever you are not present. Hence, a lack of initiating an efficient action when deemed necessary.

If you want to develop yourself as a well-rounded virtual assistant, you should practice your initiative. This is one distinguishing feature that clients look for, given the fact they hired you to assist them both when they are around and the contrary.

There are different ways you could show that you have initiative, and these are surprisingly simple. Given below are a few examples:

Taking charge when necessary. Your client is not always available to handle the tasks in the workplace. There will be times that you will decide on his or her behalf. Nonetheless, of course, there are limitations to this. You have to confirm with your employer if you can make your own decisions regarding certain matters when he or she is not available. Although there would be surprising instances that you suddenly have to take a step without further approval, clarifying things out beforehand is a safe move for you.

One good example is when you have to provide a certain quotation for a customer. If you often get approval from your employer regarding this, but there came a time that urgency was required, you may provide a quotation as you considered fit. Simply ensure to put yourself in the shoes of your employer. Consider what he or she would decide to do in case he or she is in the same situation. This is when knowing your client’s personality matters a lot.

Understanding vague instructions smartly. There are clients, who would often provide you instructions that are quite difficult to understand. Due to rushing and upcoming meetings, some of them would leave you with unclear orders. In other words, you have to use your intellect to ensure that the output you will provide is what they need.

For instance, you were required to search for lamps, which could be offered by the company in the next quarter. Instead of providing your client a research, comprising all kinds of lamps, you have to consider the nature of your business. Does the company offer office supplies? If that is the case, then you may only focus on lamps that could be used in a workplace or home office. On the other hand, if your firm is focused on home improvement, then you could work on a broader search for lamps, which could be both for offices and house furnishing.

Avoiding procrastination. It is also an initiative when you work in advance to ensure that cramming would not get in your way. Be reminded that most clients prefer that you do not let things pile up. Urgent tasks will come sooner or later, resulting in more things to manage. Do not let delayed work ruin your reputation, which is more likely when you postpone activities unnecessarily.

Take advantage of your free time, whenever the season is not hectic. Furthermore, effective time management will help you be productive every day. Simply prevent distractions and keep yourself focused during your work.

Understanding your client’s situation. If you are an executive assistant for your client, you have to accept the fact that you will organize him or her instead of the other way around. Should there be a time you noticed that he or she is often struggling in keeping up with his or her appointments, initiative comes in by how you could solve this. Instead of letting your client simply ask you to input appointments for him or her, you may also create a system of reminders, so he or she would not miss any activity during the day.

Additionally, if your client is already burdened with tons of documents to complete, offer your help, even if he or she does not require you to assist.

The aforementioned ways are effective means to show your client that you can be trusted and relied on regardless of him or her being focused on other matters of the business. Simply practice taking initiative and you would soon be accustomed to the trait.