What is a Remote Job?

Remote work simply means working a job from anywhere other than a traditional office setting- that could mean traveling to a cafe or a coworking space or logging in at home which doesn’t require any kind of commute. Work is going to be a lot different in the post-pandemic world, and being able to work remotely is likely going to be a more common option. 

What is Remote Work?

Remote work has been around for a while, but gained popularity in 2020 as folks were forced to quarantine and work from their homes. This working style allows professionals to work outside of a traditional office environment and is based on the concept that work does not need to be done in a specific place to be executed successfully.  ‘Remote work’ is a rather broad umbrella term which includes scenarios like:

• People who do their work solely from their homes 
• People who commute to and work from coworking spaces or cafes
• People who work remotely (not in an office) and on a flexible schedule
• People who work mostly remotely but also come into the office from time to time

Employees can be fully or partly remote; fully remote employees don’t come to the office at all, but partly remote employees might be required to come in a few times a month. Remote jobs can have either part-time or full-time hours, and they can have temporary, flexible, and/or alternative schedules. You can work remotely from anywhere as long as you have a laptop and a steady internet connection.

There’s been a paradigm shift in what society deems to be an appropriate workplace. Instead of coming into an office and interacting with co-workers face to face, remote workers use digital tools to handle tasks, complete projects and communicate with their team. People now have the flexibility to design their days so that their professional and personal lives can be experienced to their fullest potential and coexist peacefully. 

What Are the Benefits of Remote Work?

As an employee, the biggest advantage of remote work is that you get to create your own work environment tailored to your personal working style. Some people like working in crowded spaces while others like to concentrate in silence. Whatever your preference, with remote work you can maximize your productivity which benefits your entire team, simply by having the ability to create a workspace that aligns with your needs.

Working remotely allows for a flexible lifestyle and work-life balance. The ability to create your own schedule could be appealing to parents who want to spend more time with their children, single parents with limited work hours, someone looking to continue their education, or someone who wants to work outside of the traditional “9-5” hours or eliminate the need for a daily commute.  

Employers are also seeing the benefits of having remote workers- with decreased commutes and flexible schedules, employees are happier and more productive and employers have less need for expensive office space. Companies with remote workers are also able to recruit and hire from an expanded pool of candidates not limited to their local area.  

As technology continues to advance, remote work is going to become more common in industries that you’d expect like tech and freelancing to those that may be a bit more surprising like education, healthcare and law. If you’re looking for a remote job, there’s never been a better time to research your options. Explore popular job searches here.