The pandemic has caused many office spaces to now become remote working environments. The shift to a more mobile and flexible job locale may seem like a great way to be a member of a team but can become tedious for some.
Many studies have been showing that work from home triggers spikes in anxiety and stress, and may even impact productivity.
The change in work patterns, sometimes longer hours, movement to computerized and technological ways of managing your work, and communicating with teams were all found to be a stressor for some.
I do different businesses and manage various teams worldwide and the Here are a few things we have used and learned in our team environments to improve effective work output.
Improve On Communication & Feedback
It cannot be stressed enough how essential communication is to have a functioning team environment. The difficulty of remote working is that everyone feels disconnected and apart. So, being clear and decisive in discussions, following up, and being proactive are great ways to make your team members feel valued and appreciated.
Keep trusting in the abilities of each other and stay accountable to get tasks done. Once your workspace runs on responsibilities and roles and allows time for feedback, then many projects will run smoother.
Doing Creative Meetings And Brainstorms
Zoom fatigue can be a real thing!
Hence, know that you have to approach each day with a knowledge of being creative in your meetings and times of discussions.
Keep everyone’s cameras on during meetings, have virtual backgrounds, break with fun activities and trivia and run a meeting based on an agenda. The more organized yet evolved you make your brainstorming sessions, the better everyone will feel.
Additionally, try to keep meetings at times when people’s energy levels are up. Schedule meetings beforehand with relevant team members getting reminders and a clear idea of what may be expected from them in each session.
Using Team-Based Tools
I’ve found tools such as Click-Up and Trello as fantastic for improving team scheduling of tasks and allotment of deadlines for projects.
You have to be driven but patient enough to start
Ensure you also have meeting notes and project files inaccessible places for all relevant team members. In addition, keep up-to-date with where everyone is on the list of scheduled daily work outputs.
Google Drive and Dropbox are great places for storage and archiving.
Whatsapp and emails are wonderful avenues for daily check-ins and talks.
Celebrate Achievements with Exciting Virtual Parties Or Announcements
Virtual sessions may become mundane after a while if you’re only talking about daily work tasks. Ensure you celebrate team members and company milestones with virtual meetings too!
Create team-based events around holidays and birthdays. Splash award ceremonies for the end of the year or end-of-quarter meetings. When a major project gets finalized, reward your team and keep everyone excited for the next company activities and tasks.
Once you start approaching your work with renewed vigor and excitement it can cause a ripple effect. For managers and supervisors, this is essential! The mood, motivation, and manner of your daily dealings will result in greater work output and business improvements in all areas.
Know that a more connected and motivated workspace will result in organizational growth, and increased empowerment in workers. Who doesn’t want productive and fruitful workers? I know I do. So I ensure I instill greater effectiveness and innovation in daily tasks.
What idea above sparked something in you from this article? Let us know by commenting below.