About the Book

We’re in the midst of a workplace revolution. Thanks to broader and faster Internet access in most areas of the world, and recent technological innovations such as instant file sharing, we have the ability today to work as easily from home or from any other remote location as from a cookie-cutter cubicle. In fact, most of us would be even more productive and more satisfied with our jobs and lives by working from a virtual office.

While lots of people and many companies realize the value of this mode of work, a virtual office isn’t for everyone. Even when it is possible to work remotely, it’s not all rainbows and unicorns. There are real challenges involved when it comes to communication, time management, and teamwork. That said, with the proper frame of mind, the right tools, and robust processes in place, virtual offices can offer a vast improvement over traditional workspaces.

Topics covered in The Successful Virtual Office In 30 Minutes include:

  • Home office requirements, from insurance to Internet
  • Four elements of a productive home office
  • Matching your main office and mobile office
  • Ergonomics (or how to keep your office from killing you)
  • Coffee shops, coworking spaces, and alternative office arrangements
  • How to tame alerts, interruptions, and procrastination
  • Optimizing your daily routine
  • Building a workplace culture with a virtual team
  • Working across time zones
  • Dealing with communication challenges and resentment
  • Melanie’s Top Tech Tools for connectivity, project management, security, and more
The Successful Virtual Office In 30 Minutes

The Successful Virtual Office In 30 Minutes contains best practices, tips, and product recommendations which can help you get the most out of your virtual office. Buy it today!

Excerpt: Setting up matching offices and your mobile office

Since many of us move between offices — for example, splitting time between a home office and an office building, or between home and hotels — then we should have a plan for these scenarios as well.

Set up matching offices: Author Matt Perman recommends mirroring your system in all places. For example, if you have an inbox and phone on the left side of your desk and a filing cabinet to the right at the office, replicate that setup at home. If you keep certain supplies in specific desk drawers, use that same arrangement everywhere. Your filing system should likewise be similar in both places.

The point isn’t to set up a rigid system, but rather to give yourself a familiar setting wherever you’re working from, thereby reducing the friction associated with maintaining multiple places of work. Working at your desk and with your office tools should be second nature, no matter where you are. That’s one of the freedoms of a well-organized mobile office.

Have a “go bag” for quick getaways: For those times when you work in your “third place” (not the conventional office or a home office, but somewhere like Starbucks or a hotel room), have a mobile “go bag” at the ready. This is simply a briefcase or laptop bag containing your office essentials. Besides typical supplies such as pen and paper, a go bag might also include duplicate chargers for your laptop and phone, extra business cards, and a pair of headphones.

Plan for constant movement: If you’re a frequent traveler, pad your schedule for some downtime or easier tasks before and after your travel dates. Travel is stressful, both physically and mentally, but if you have the chance to arrange less taxing work before and after you hit the road, your life as a “mobile worker” will go more smoothly. We will discuss how to better manage your energy later in this book.

Excerpted from Chapter 1 of The Successful Virtual Office In 30 Minutes: Best practices, tools, and setup tips for your home office, coworking space, or mobile office by author Melanie Pinola. Available as in ebook, paperback, and PDF formats.