So You Want to Work from Home without Leaving Your Current Job

iUniverse, Inc.

Contents

Foreword by Maria Chavez........................................xiIntroduction....................................................1Your Situation..................................................4Is Working from Home a Good Fit for You?........................4Key Tips for Working from Home..................................6Convincing Your Manager.........................................9Know Your Manager's Paradigm....................................9Timing and Location.............................................10Communication Skills............................................11Key Tips for Convincing Your Manager............................25Successfully Working from Home..................................29Setting Up Shop.................................................29Some Changes May Be Needed......................................33Same Old Routine................................................34Key Tips for Successfully Working from Home.....................36Improving Productivity..........................................39Get More Done Each Day..........................................39Use Multiple Methods to Communicate.............................46Tips for Improving Productivity.................................60Maintaining Balance.............................................63Set Boundaries..................................................64Physical Activity and Nutrition.................................64Managing Stress.................................................80Key Tips for Maintaining Balance................................90Putting It All Together.........................................93References......................................................99About the Author................................................103Index...........................................................105

Chapter One

Your plans to convince your manager of your work-from-home ambitions should be deliberate and well planned. You may have only one opportunity to convince your manager, if your position is not already being structured to work off premises. This is no time for an "elevator speech" in passing.

Know Your Manager's Paradigm

Before you enter into a discussion about your plans, evaluate where your manager may be coming from. Many people do not understand the benefits that working at home can provide. Some people have an older stereotype of working, based on past experience (Covey 1990); they believe that work only gets done at the organization's facility. While this is true for some jobs, there are many jobs with tasks that can be done remotely.

? Marriott reservations are completed by 325 employees working from their homes (Kimo Kippen, personal communication 2010). ? Accounting firm KPMG (formerly, Klynveld, Peat, McClinton, and Goerdeler) creates all its training materials through employees working from home with a secured, social Web site where they can see each other's work and where feedback from subject matter experts can be input and viewed (Daniel Kuzup, personal communication 2010). ? Hewlett-Packard technical support is provided by technical· experts working from their homes around the world, even though you are calling a toll-free phone number in the United States (Robert Gordon, personal communication 2010).

Make a list of all the daily/weekly tasks required for your job. Evaluate which tasks can be completed remotely, and mark each with an H. Mark tasks that must be completed on the premises with Os.

Prepare your notes carefully so that you can articulate them clearly with your manager. Once your manager has made a decision regarding your request to work from home, be sure that you understand the reasoning behind his/her decision. This is significant, in case there is an opportunity to revisit the conversation. Be accepting of your manager's decision, and don't get defensive or confrontational. You never want to burn a bridge, regardless of the outcome of the decision.

Once you have specifically outlined your conversation, consider when and where it should take place; those are important factors as well.

Timing and Location

If your manager is putting out many fires, expecting important visitors, or scheduled in back-to-back meetings all day long, recognize that it would probably not be a good time to talk. This is not the type of conversation to conduct in the hallway or with other employees present. The best approach is to schedule a thirty-minute meeting in the manager's office. If your manager asks, "What is this about?", reply with a generic statement like, "I want to discuss some ideas about my job" as opposed to "I would like to talk about working from home".

Being a skilled communicator can make the difference between a yes and a no response.

Communication Skills

Effective communication is a complex process including several basic skills. Communication is not a science of regimented, precise procedures. There are specific, sound principles and themes, but there are thousands of variations on these themes, which can be construed subjectively by the intended receiver(s). The most critical type of communication is face-to-face. That's when you are persuading others by communicating your ideas in person (Decker 1996).

Your believability is critical to the successful outcome of a persuasive conversation. No matter what is said, it is not going to make much difference in the mind of the listener unless you are credible and believable. On that note, there are three distinct components of a message that can lead to your believability (Mehrabian 1993).

The three components of a message that need to be consistent to make the presenter believable are: verbal, vocal, and visual. The verbal component is the actual words used. The tone component represents the tone, pitch, and vocal quality of the message. The visual component refers to speaker's body language. Which component most influences the listener's judgment of your believability?

? Verbal: 7 percent

? Vocal: 38 percent

? Visual: 57 percent

The actual words (verbal component) lead to your believability in a small way.

However, your voice and body language contribute greatly to your believability. When all three elements work together, your message is consistent. The excitement and enthusiasm of your voice work with the energy and animation of your face and body to reflect your confidence and conviction. If you are nervous or under pressure, you will most likely concentrate on your words while your voice may come across as halting and tremulous. You are more likely to look down and clasp your hands. Be aware that these (sometimes natural) behaviors send an inconsistent message, eroding your believability.

Colin Powell was relatively unknown when the American people wanted him to run for president. What made him such an attractive candidate and liked by so many people? He made the verbal, vocal, and visual elements of his message work together, hence making him believable in the eyes of the American people.

Former presidents Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan couldn't have been any more different from each other. From their political parties to their political views to their ages, they were on opposite ends of the spectrum. But they had one thing in common: they sent consistent messages through their words, voice, face, and body, making them believable to the American people.

Decker (1996) identified nine behavioral skills that, when displayed well, can help you send a consistent message. You use these skills every day, but you may not be aware of them.

Eye communication is the most important tool you have in your personal-impact toolkit. Effective eye communication includes standing or sitting no closer than three feet away from the person with whom you are conversing and maintaining three to five seconds of direct eye contact before you look away for a moment. If you are uncomfortable looking directly at people's eyes, try looking at their foreheads. This will have the same effect.

Practice Activities

1. Have a "stare-down" with a partner. Sit or stand three feet apart. Make eye contact with your partner while your partner silently counts the seconds you maintain eye contact without looking away. When you reach five seconds of constant eye contact, have your partner raise a hand to indicate the five-second mark. Keep trying until you have maintained five seconds of constant eye contact.

2. Add voice to the stare-down. Try the same exercise as above, but talk to your partner while maintaining five seconds of constant eye contact.

Posture sends a critical message as to whether you are really engaged and passionate about what you are saying or whether you really want to be there. Your posture, sitting or standing, is often attributed to the habits you had when you were a teenager (Dr. Jon Sherman, personal communication 2006). You may have slumped your shoulders because you were tall or shy and wanted to fit in with everyone. Maybe you slouched in a chair when sitting because you were nervous about speaking to someone one-on-one.

Effective posture when sitting includes aligning your back with the back of the chair, keeping your feet flat on the floor and your arms resting on chair arms or on your lap without crossing or clasping your hands together. When standing, use the ready position just as athletes do. In the ready position, your feet should be flat on the floor, shoulder-width apart; your knees should be slightly bent as if you could move at any moment in any direction, and your arms should be relaxed and at your sides. Avoid shifting your weight to one hip, crossing your feet, rocking from heel to toe, pacing, and clasping your hands in front of you, because those behaviors send a message of noninterest.

Practice Activities

1. Look at yourself sitting and standing in front of a mirror. This activity is even better if someone can videotape you. Practice effective and ineffective ways so you can see what message others see.

2. Walk away from a wall. Stand against a wall with your heels and shoulders touching the wall and hands at your side. Slowly relax and allow your lower back to touch the wall. Maintaining this body position, take a few steps away from the wall. Shake your hands slightly so you will not be so stiff, and take a few more steps. Does this posture make you feel more confident? That's the message others will see.

Gestures and facial expressions reflect energy when you communicate. You should have your arms and hands natural and relaxed when you are at rest. You gesture naturally when you are animated and enthusiastic. Learn to smile under pressure in the same way you would with a natural smile when you are comfortable. Gestures need to be natural for you. Avoid low-energy gestures that may appear when you're nervous, such as clasping your hands low and in front of your body, clasping your hands at waist level, and placing your hands on your hips. A smile may come naturally to you, or it may not. If you are not a natural smiler, you need to be aware of your most important facial gesture. Stand in front of a mirror and make a smile that looks natural for you. Then close your eyes to remember how it feels so you can repeat it in front of other people—not just the mirror.

Practice Activities

1. Talk in front of a mirror, sitting and standing, as if the mirror is another person. Look for your most natural gestures and facial expressions. Look for any bad habits that may erode your confidence and energy levels. Keep practicing until you see natural gestures and facial expressions without bad habits. Better yet, have someone videotape you.

2. Watch a situation comedy (sitcom), the news, or a talk show on television with the sound off for about ten minutes. See if you can determine what the people on television are communicating without hearing their words. Their believability, confidence, and credibility are largely conveyed through their gestures and facial expressions.

Dress and appearance send a message within the first five seconds of meeting a person. They say, "Never judge a book by its cover," but people do. Those initial five seconds are known to provide an emotional impression rather than a content or intellectual impression. Since 90 percent of your body is covered by clothing, be aware of what your clothing and appearance are communicating. The 10 percent not covered also draws people to form impressions. Be aware of your grooming habits, hairstyle, jewelry, cosmetics, tattoos, and facial hair.

Dress appropriately, even though you may not have a guidebook that tells you how to groom and dress for certain types of occasions. You should choose comfortable clothing that is in sync with the company's culture but also consider the climate, time of day, social situation, and other circumstances. Be sure your clothes fit well and are not outdated, and choose colors and patterns that accentuate your body type and skin tone. Dress and appearance may seem superficial, but they communicate to others how you feel about yourself.

Practice Activities

1. Go to a place where lots of people gather, such as a store, sporting event, public building, etc. Observe the dress and appearance of five people you do not know for five seconds and analyze what impressions you can draw from them in that five seconds.

2. Every day, look for something new in a new way. Choose an item such as your shoes, dress, suit, slacks, jacket, tie, shirt, and/or a grooming habit. Change it. Combine it with something different from what you have been combining it with. Dressing differently daily will sensitize you to how you feel about your dress and appearance.

Voice and vocal variety is the primary vehicle that carries your message. It's literally the vehicle surrounding your words—you can have an old jalopy that rattles down the road or a smoothly running, finely tuned automobile. Both will get you to your destination, but the quality of the ride varies greatly. Your voice transmits energy. The excitement and enthusiasm you feel should be directly conveyed by the sound of your voice. Record your voice to become aware of how much energy you transmit to others. The quality of your vocal tone and variety can count for 84 percent of your believability when people cannot see you, such as on a telephone call (Mehrabian 1992). Subtleties of voice are far more numerous than you may think. You can read an enormous amount into the vocal tone of people during the first few seconds on the phone.

There are four aspects that make up your vocal expression: relaxation, breathing, resonance, and projection. Each can be altered through exercises to expand your vocal expression. They all work together to give your voice its unique characteristics. Vocal variety is a great way to keep people interested and involved. Use the roller coaster to consciously raise your voice and let it plummet. This will make you aware of a monotone. Don't read speeches, as that often leads to a monotone delivery.

Practice Activities

1. Call five companies at random out of the phone book. Rate them on their vocal tone and the quality of the way they answer the phone.

2. Increase your resonance. Drop your jaw and allow it to hang loosely. Inhale deeply through your nose, allowing your belly to fill with air. As you exhale say, "King Kong. Ding dong. Bing bong." Begin with a high tone and gradually lower your tone for each word. Do this gently, and avoid pushing on your throat muscles.

3. Several relaxation activities that may improve your voice can be found in the chapter on maintaining balance.

Language, pauses, and nonwords are most associated with the verbal component of your believability, but they often become distractions for your listeners. Language is made up of both words and nonwords such as um, ah, and jargon that fill otherwise quiet space. You communicate most effectively when you are able to select the right words and use direct language to state your intentions. This requires you to have a rich vocabulary that can be used responsively and appropriately as the situation and audience demand. For example, you would not talk to a child the same way as you would a group of physicians.

Nonwords are barriers to clear communication. Um, okay, you know, well, and, etc., are not just sloppy but distracting when repeated as a habit. Replace these nonwords with pauses. Pauses are an integral part of language. Effective communicators use pauses between sentences. Outstanding communicators use pauses for dramatic effect, even in the middle of a sentence.

Pauses allow you to emphasize key points of your conversation. They can also bring the wandering-minded listener back to listening to you. Effective pauses are usually three to four seconds long. However, pauses can be uncomfortable when you are sending your message. You may think these few seconds seem like a few hours. You may feel compelled to fill the silence with ums and ahs, but try to wait out the silence with a pause.

Beware of jargon. Jargon is excellent communication shorthand for people who share the same language. Even English words will sound like a foreign language if your listener doesn't understand your jargon. Learn to use and pronounce words correctly.

Speak the language of your manager. The words you choose and the tone with which you deliver the message should be crafted to inspire interest in your manager. Managers have key organizational performance measures that they monitor quite closely. But they tend to gravitate toward one more than the others. Performance measures may include:

? financial goals; ? employee development; ? workplace safety; ? diversity; ? customer feedback; ? employee engagement/satisfaction; ? human resources administration; ? labor hours; ? inventory management; ? receivables (money owed to the company by customers or clients); ? asset management (property held that depreciates over time and may be paid for against an amortization schedule); and ? growth.

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Excerpted from So You Want to Work from Home without Leaving Your Current Jobby Frances D. Szabo Copyright © 2010 by Frances D. Szabo. Excerpted by permission of iUniverse, Inc.. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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