New Worker Mag » Remote Work » 7 signs your job should be remote

by Kayla Matthews

Slowly but surely, businesses everywhere are realizing the potential for remote employment. In fact, remote job listings increased 52% in the last two years, and 43% of the U.S. workforce now works remotely at least some of the time, up from only 9% of workers in 2007.

Many people already have the kind of job that should be remote, but they don’t know it. Jobs that require distant management and plenty of attentive work can feasibly be performed outside the office, but several workplaces don’t realize their potential for remote capabilities.

If you suspect that you could efficiently finish your work within your own living space, but you’re not quite sure, check out the following seven signs that indicate your job should be remote.

1. You Can Motivate Yourself

If your supervisor or manager doesn’t have to constantly remind you to complete projects or keep progressing through your tasks, then you could thrive in a remote job. When you are the primary person motivating yourself to accomplish work, you don’t need to sit in the office to keep your productivity up.

The temptation to kick back and watch a TV show or take a three-hour nap can be strong, but with the determination that you won’t give in during office hours — no matter what setting you’re in — you can make an exceptional remote employee.

2. Your Duties Can Be Managed From Home

If the kind of management you require could be achieved over the phone or with a quick email, it’s possible your duties aren’t chained to a traditional office space. You’ll still need to keep an open line of communication to your manager, but minimal collaboration means you could have the freedom of a work-from-home position.

3. You Have the Communication Skills for a Work-From-Home Job

When you’re an expert communicator on the phone, you have a gift many others don’t. Many people have trouble getting a point across or picking up on verbal cues without seeing another person’s face and body language. But if you function well during a chat on the phone, you could realistically move into a remote role and continue to hone your skills.

Emailing and messaging also take up a large portion of remote communication, so those who write well can easily transition to using their home as an office.

4. You Can Focus Better on Your Own

Are distracting coworkers the biggest threat to your productivity? Does your environment plague you with lots of interruptions? If so, you might work better in the quiet of your own home. Your ability to focus in an isolated setting can set you apart for the remote work life.

Even those who love interacting with people can prefer a remote job because you have the flexibility to work from a coffee shop or public place where you can be surrounded by others. But the setting of your choice still allows you to focus without wasting time or breaking your concentration.

5. You Are Proficient at Prioritizing

When you know how to identify the most important tasks in your day and diligently check each one off, your goal-oriented behavior can come in handy when you work from home. You understand what needs to get done first and what is a secondary task.

So, you can eliminate the need to go over these goals when you’re given the responsibility of remote work. It’s likely that you will be setting your daily and weekly goals yourself, so you can regularly exercise this skill.

6. You Have an Area to Work in Your Home

If your home has extra space where you can set up a desk to serve as your office, then the shift from a typical workplace to working from home will be significantly easier. You’ll need an area where you can set up your computer and other technology as well as a distraction-free zone.

Or, if you prefer to work outside the main office, but want to leave your living space separate, you can find a small office space. A personal office can benefit freelance workers, too.

7. You Can Set Work and Home Life Boundaries

If you have experience separating your work hours from your home life, then you’re ready to take on remote work. The boundaries can easily become blurred when your family or home to-do list are closer than normal, but you need to be comfortable confining work and home to designated times and places.

What to Do If Your Job Should Be Remote

Rather than continuing to work in an office setting that you don’t prefer, try switching to remote work in an environment you can thrive in. If you recognize that you can do your job remotely, you can propose the idea to your boss. Ask to try out remote work for a few days or a week at first. If this goes well, you can shift further into a work-from-home setting.

If your boss isn’t having it or your company is not willing to transition their workers into a remote position, consider reaching out to other remote-friendly businesses.