For many years, the concept of working remotely seemed like a literal tug-of-war as office workers unsuccessfully tried to convince their disbelieving managers of the benefits of working from home.

Then COVID-19 came along and changed everything.

Millions of office workers now find themselves sitting in a makeshift office in their living rooms. Many of them very quickly started to realize that this new “promised land” comes with more than a few challenges that have made working from home difficult.

Inferior tech, multiple distractions, and a lack of professional working space are just a few of the many challenges that remote workers are now facing as they try to perform their job from their living room or home office.

We want to share with you a few tips on how you can resolve some of the challenges that working from home presents.

Distractions

One of the most significant issues that remote workers now face is the abundance of distractions:

• Fido barking in the background while you’re on a conference call.
• The gardeners performing their rendition of a Metallica song with leaf blowers and lawnmowers.
• Amazon delivery guy banging on your front door.

Unless you’ve constructed a sound-proof, dedicated home office over the past few months, you’re going to have to find a way to lessen these distractions.

The gardeners are just doing their job, Fido is only trying to protect you from the squirrel in the backyard, and the Amazon guy wants to make sure you’ve received your package.

The only real solution to getting rid of these distractions is to hop in your car and head on over to a dedicated office workspace. Many of them are offering flexible plans for this time, including one free hour for those who need to hop out for a conference call or quiet time to concentrate.

Lack of Human Contact

It can take a few weeks to a few months, but the average stay-at-home office worker will soon come to realize another challenge that many seasoned remote workers are all too familiar with—the lack of human contact.

As time goes by and you settle into a routine, you might begin to notice that you miss talking to people. Think back to how many conversations you had with your co-workers on a daily basis when working from the main office. Humans are sociable by nature, and working from home by yourself day after day, week after week, can take its toll in terms of loneliness.

Hopping on a phone or video conference call with your co-workers might solve this problem, but it’s only temporary.

You can head on over to Starbucks in the high hopes that someone will engage you in conversation, but that’s often a roll of the dice. Maybe the art student sitting next to you isn’t in the mood to talk, or the barista is too busy making drinks to chit-chat.

An office workspace is ideal for times when you crave human contact. Everyone there is working remotely, and you’ll find that people are more willing to engage in conversation more readily than the barista or art student at Starbucks. There’s also a dedicated kitchen where it’s almost impossible not to meet someone and introduce yourself.

Inferior Office Tech

Another major challenge that many remote workers are facing is the lack of office tech. Their home printer, internet connection, and shoddy laptop webcam are creating more problems than they’re solving.

Even if they’re currently working as intended, as with all things tech, eventually they will break down when you least expect it. When this happens, you suddenly become the new IT department. This presents a problem if your internet connection goes down and you have an important conference call scheduled in 15 minutes.

Office supplies are also in short supply. The idea of running out to Staples or Office Depot and dropping a hundred dollars on pens, paper, and staplers is out of the question for most.

There are only two real solutions to this problem—ask your office manager to cover the costs of buying reliable tech for your home office or hop in your car and head on over to an office workspace where there’s an abundance of the latest office tech and someone to service it in case it goes down.

Lack of Conference Rooms

Some office workers who are working from home will need to take meetings with vendors, sales reps, and other co-workers. The idea of inviting a stranger over to your home for a business meeting isn’t too appealing—so it’s off to Starbucks, Applebee’s, or the local pub to conduct your meeting.

While you can use these facilities in a pinch, it isn’t very professional to meet at Starbucks, and you’re still going to have the same distractions and lack of reliable office tech.

Dedicated office spaces, such as Tech Culture McKinney, offer technologically-advanced conference rooms filled with the latest office tech and reliable high-speed internet that will allow you to present a professional image and conduct a successful business meeting.

Remote Work—The New Norm

The COVID-19 virus has completely changed the way we do business. It has ushered in a new era where both office workers and managers are starting to realize the benefits of working remotely. The challenges that stay-at-home office workers are facing can be eliminated by dedicated co-working spaces such as Tech Culture McKinney.

At TechCulture McKinney, our goal is to provide you with the tools and services you need to help grow your business. We also offer extensive consulting and support services, such as finance, legal, accounting, programming, marketing, and sales. Give us a call at (469) 467-9231 or contact us to schedule a tour to learn more about the value that we can provide to you, your business, and your remote workers.