10 Lessons from 4 Years Working Remotely at Automattic

10 Lessons from 4 Years Working Remotely at Automattic

4 years ago today I started working full-time for Automattic. Four years seems like a lifetime, but it’s a pretty short time in my work history, and it’s been the most life-changing job so far for …

A colleague at work shared this. It’s fantastic. I’ll echo the importance of emoticons and routine. Text chat is the primary form of communication in remote teams, so overuse emoticons to clarify tone. And remember, text chat doesn’t carry tone. Novelists spend hours getting the tone right in their text. You and your colleagues are not going to spend that time in day-to-day text communication. Don’t assume tone, and ask questions to clarify.

Also, every successful telecommuter I know has some kind of work/life ritual. Some people need to get dressed properly before starting work. Some people are strict on work hours. Figure out what your non-negotiables are for making the day feel like a work-day and the non-work time feel like home time, and stick to those things, religiously.