Staying Visible While You Work From Home (WFH)
Research shows that while working from home makes you more productive, it won’t necessarily help you advance your career. There’s still a perception that being present in the office means you’re working harder. This makes it especially challenging for people working fully remote or in a hybrid workplace where people are in the office on different days, especially if when you’re there doesn’t line up with the senior leaders of the organization.
Now consider that more women, especially working mothers, want to work remotely. According to a McKinsey and Company survey in December 2020, working parents with children under 18 were three times as likely to want to work from home.
Employers have work to do to adapt to this new world of work, and innovate how to build culture on remote/hybrid teams. Until then, if the adage “out of sight, out of mind” is true, then it will be on you to make sure you’re visible, even while you work from home. Here are four ways for you to do this—and extra motivation for why it matters.
Show Up for Your Boss
Find ways to proactively communicate with your boss outside of responding to their emails or sending along completed projects. You want to both develop rapport and show your value. You’ll need to overcommunicate which obstacles you’ve overcome or how you creatively solved a problem than you did when you worked in an office to offset the bias of not being able to see your work in person. If you want to share a quick update on your progress or outcomes, send what I call a Win of the Day (WOTD) email, text, or Slack message. If you want to provide a more comprehensive progress report, the NNTR Update might be the better format.
In case you need a little extra motivation…
Your work cannot speak for itself. You are your own best advocate.
If you feel unsure about sending yet another email to your boss’ crowded inbox, consider this: I love receiving Win of the Day emails from team members at all levels of the organization. It’s a great way to stay connected and feel informed about their work—and it’s especially motivating for me on the tough workdays to be reminded we’re in it together.
Show Up for Your Colleagues
The days of rolling over to the next cubicle to ask a question may be over, but you can still connect with your colleagues. Send them notes to ask how their projects are going, set up virtual coffee, go for a socially distanced walk. Leading from where you are means showing up for your colleagues. Plus, these interactions make work more fun, and we could all use more joy at work.
In case you need a little extra motivation…
Advancing your career is also about being seen as a collaborator, go-to for advice, and someone who genuinely cares about their colleagues.
Show Up for Your Team
People who work in the office are perceived to be working harder, even if it’s not true. Figure out ways to make it seem like you’re present while you’re hanging on your couch. This may require a bit more intentionality when you’re not running into people in the hallway or at the coffee machine. You’ll want to be known as someone who is accountable and follows through. You can do this by responding promptly when you’re working on a cross-functional team and proactively communicating and sharing information with colleagues. This also means showing up for the optional group events, like virtual trivia or other team building activities. You don’t need to compromise your boundaries or go overboard to the point of burnout, even occasionally will help you be noticed.
In case you need a little extra motivation…
You have big goals you want to achieve, and you’ll want to demonstrate your commitment to the organization. If you’re looking to move to another team at some point or want to better understand different roles within the organization, this helps build those connections and relationships in an authentic, casual way.
Show Up for Your Mentors
One of the big drawbacks about the virtual work world is that it requires much more effort to connect with other people. Because we’re all working longer hours in a remote environment, you’re less likely to have the energy to do one more thing—even if that thing is important to your career. Nurturing your network, particularly with people who help you show up as the best version of yourself, is essential.
In case you need a little extra motivation…
Your mentors will be there for you with guidance, insight, and support, which will be important on your career journey.
BONUS: Check out my new free guide on how to build your mentor relationships to get the best leadership and career advice! To get a copy of Creating Your Personal Board of Advisors, text SHANNA to 66866 or click here.
Working from home requires more effort to be visible and it’s worth the investment in your career—and yourself.