We’re lucky enough to be in an industry where working remotely has long been accepted and actually fast becoming the norm. Whilst we’ve always offered remote and flex working as an option for our staff, it’s always been centred around the office, with all team members wanting at least a few days a month in the office, as much for the social aspects of being in a team as for work itself.

Like many others, we made the call to move the whole team to remote working fairly early on in the Covid 19 epidemic so, at the point of the country going on lock down, we’d already had several weeks of getting used to being home bound. Whilst remote working wasn’t a new concept to us, it’s amazing how much of a difference having the option of the office taken away makes to you mentally.

So for all you who are new to working from home, we’ve polled the office and pulled together a list of software, tips and tricks that will hopefully help ease you into the world of remote working.

Staying productive

Whilst this list is by no means exhaustive, these are the top bits of software/apps that we use on a daily basis and make remote working successful for us.

Voipfone

Whilst there are a number of VOIP providers around we’ve been using Voipfone for several years now for our hosted PBX, their prices have always been great and their support is second to none. The transition from desk phones to a combination of app and softphones was seamless for our team.

Sign up for a Voipfone 30 day Free Trial

Passwork

Passwork is a password manager that works amazingly well for teams and individuals. You can set up different vaults for different teams as well as being able to send one time passwords for ad hoc usage. Really handy for those times when you can no longer nudge the person next to you for a reminder of that one password you thought you’d never forget.

Find out more at passwork.me

Trello

Good project management is a must when the whole team is working apart. We’ve tried many (many many) different systems over the years but we always come back to trello – it’s quick, it’s intuitive and it updates in real time so everyone knows what’s going on as it happens. The free account is also one of the most generous we’ve come across but the paid for account adds a whole extra level of awesomeness.

Check them out at trello.com

Slack

Email is great but Slack is an amazing way to keep in touch with the whole team during the day by chat, voice and video. From talking about projects, offering advice to chatting about last nights TV, Slack is a great way to keep the team spirit high wherever you are in the world.

Keep talking at slack.com

Google Meet

Google Meet is a great tool for keeping in touch with clients, it allows video conferencing, chat and screen sharing, its entirely web based and shareable via a quick weblink so there’s no downloads and it works on pretty much any browser.

Find out more at meet.google.com

Any Desk

As a part of our job there is invariably a need for technical support, whether it’s setting up email, explaining new functionality or bug fixing issues. Any desk allows for remote access and control across almost any device. We love it as it’s easy to use, quick for clients to install (it’s a tiny download) and of all the ones we’ve tried seems to have the most consistent connection speed and quality.

Well worth a look at anydesk.com

Figma

This one bit of software has changed the way we design websites and since working remotely has really come into its own. Whilst we could rattle on for hours about how it compares to xd, photoshop or sketch, the biggest benefit for home working are its collaboration tools. As well as being able to leave comments/questions anywhere on screen, the live view is awesome and allows for both our designers and our clients to be in the same file at the same time, making changes and updates in real time together. This has massively reduced the back and forth in the design process and created a much more collaborative environment with which clients can get truly involved.

Start designing now at figma.com

Dropbox

We’ve been using dropbox for longer than I can even remember and it’s a great way of keeping all your files accessible by everyone. You have the option of downloading/uploading files as well has having a folder on your machine that handles syncing automatically so that anytime someone changes a file, you’ll get the latest version too. If you have a lot of files though, don’t forget to turn on smart sync – you can choose which files/folders are kept in sync rather than downloading everything.

Stay in sync at dropbox.com

Staying focussed

If you’re not used to working at home on your own, staying on task and focussed is a tricky thing to master all on it’s own. Read on for the top tips from the SP team:

Routine

This is probably the most important one of this whole list. Creating a routine and sticking to it is the best way to keep your mind active and on the job. Whilst we’ve always worked on the basis of flexi time there are core touch points we have during the day that all team members take part in.
Little things like having your meals and breaks at the same time and starting / finishing work at the same time each day help keep that distinction between work and home, stopping you from feeling like you’re always at work or vice versa. It also helps with customers and your team members as they know when you’ll be available and they can avoid encroaching on your down time.

Regular Contact

Having started Squashed Pixel working from home on my own over 10 years ago I can testify for how easy it is to go for days without speaking to people without realising. We use a range of tools and software (many mentioned above) to ensure that the whole team keeps talking and stays in regular contact. We have 2 touch points during the day on which the whole team jumps on to a video call with ad hoc calling and messaging taking place in-between.

Background Noise

Going from a bustling office to the quiet of a home office can be quite disconcerting, especially if your office is like ours. The 2 most popular services in the office are Spotify and the radio. I’m personally a big fan of the radio, I spend less time skipping tracks and I’ve found it also gives me a sense of time as well.

Coffee

Well, this ones a given but, whilst coffee is definitely the fuel of the office we’ve found that it’s a good reason to take regular breaks, move around a bit and avoid sitting for too long a time.

Staying Healthy

Working at home generally means you’ve got to be a bit more aware of health and fitness as you won’t be moving around or be half as active as you are at the office. Combine this with a lockdown and your movements will be significantly less than normal which means you’ve got to be a lot more aware of yourself. These apps / services are great for keeping on top of things:

MyFitnessPal

One of the easiest calorie tracking systems out there, they have a web version and apps on both iPhone and android. Whether you’re wanting to loose, gain or maintain your weight, keeping track of what you’re putting in your body helps you maintain control.

myfitnesspal.com

Hydro Coach

Another thing to keep track of is your water intake. It’s easy to forget how much fluid your taking on in a day and it’s a massive factor in keeping you feeling healthy and in shape. Hydro Coach is an easy way to keep on top of this in a nice visual manner.

Hydrocoach.com

Get Dressed

A simple thing but easy to not do when you’re working from home. Getting dressed, even if it’s swapping from your nighttime PJ’s to your daytime PJ’s it keeps your mind on track and healthy.

Joe Wicks

I’m sure you’ve all already heard about Joe Wicks daily PE lessons on youtube. It’s been great for the kids but many of the parents here have been getting involved too and really enjoying it. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAxW1XT0iEJo0TYlRfn6rYQ

If you like the idea but want something a bit more grown up – FitnessBlender have a whole range of videos all of which you can do at home with no/minimal gear.

STAY SAFE PEOPLE STAY AT HOME

We hope you’ve found this information useful. Do just shout if there are any other topics you’d like us to discuss or offer advice on.
You can drop us a line here – Contact Us