Learning To Cope With Remote Working With Neeraj Mathur
In this episode of The Product Angle show – we talk about learning to cope with remote working. We live-streamed with Neeraj Mathur. Neeraj is a VP of Product.
Some of the questions Neeraj and I chat about include:
- How is remote working defined?
- What are some of the best practices for remote working?
- What to do if you are unable to differentiate between work and home? (is this necessary?)
- Common pitfalls to avoid while working from home
- What to do if you miss the human interaction?
Learning to cope with remote working discussion
Who you are and what you do
Hi, my name is Neeraj Mathur. I am an avid reader and a runner. I like to think of myself as a person on a mission to find ways to make life simpler and easier for others, wherever possible. While I was born and raised in New Delhi, India, I have called Silicon Valley my home for more than decades now with my wonderful wife, Rani, and our two kids.
Work-wise, I am a mission-driven Product Management and Design professional with over 20-years of experience in the high tech industry under my belt. I have had the privilege to work in and lead Product Management and Design at Enterprises such as Cisco Systems, Sun Microsystems, and Silicon Graphics, as well as VC-backed startups in Security and Fintech such as Authentic8, Skyhigh Networks, and Bluebox Security and ForUsAll.
Tell us something that you cannot Google about you
As a young child, I was an ardent fan of cricket. In addition, I learned Taekwondo which I give a lot of credit to for focus, discipline, and structure in my life over the years.
How do you define remote working?
I define it as a working style that allows professionals to work from anywhere they want. They are not tied to an office environment or any other location. A remote employee is able to meet their work goals wherever they want. Effectively, zero commutes.
Build a culture that promotes work-life integration; be open for kids and pets to join the meetings and become part of your day, they are after all part of your life - @neeraj Share on XWhat are some of the best practices for remote working?
- Have a routine
- Set a dedicated space
- Structure your day
- Hours (Ex: 8-5)
- Meetings (Ex: Group whenever possible, identify a day of no meetings)
- Get Creative (Ex: If you don’t need to see a screen, take a call over the phone and walk around in the space that you have or outside depending upon what is safe and allowed in your area)
- Focus Time (Put it on the calendar)
- Breaks (You must take breaks)
- Contract with new-found “co-workers”
- Communicate and partner
- Set clear expectations with each other
- Roommates: Know who is going be where; so you can respect space
- Couples: Who has meetings and when clashing times, how will we prioritize which one needs more focus and less noise
- Families: Partner; be flexible; adjust as needed; What to do if you are unable to differentiate between work and home? (is this necessary?)
- Build a culture that promotes work-life integration; be open for kids and pets to join the meetings and become part of your day, they are after all part of your life.
- For a long time, we have taken work home, it is about time we also brought some home to work.
Common pitfalls to avoid while working from home
- Lack of structure
- Manage your time
- Prioritize (how many items do you intend to accomplish today)
- Know yourself (we all perform differently at different times of the day; find your peaks and troughs, assign work accordingly)
- Interruptions will happen; minimize self-induced ones
- Stop Working
- Lack of infrastructure
- A laptop that works – with audio and video
- High-speed internet
- A quiet area/place to focus
- Appropriate seating and lighting
Thank you, Neeraj 🙏 Read the full list from Neeraj on learning to cope with remote working over at his blog – Chai Musings