Friends, Dating, Career Meet Other Remote Work Professionals

Don’t just talk about work; share more of yourself. Our conversations are sprinkled with slips, pauses, lies, and clues to our inner world. Here’s what we reveal when we speak, whether we mean to or not. But don’t try to start convos how to make friends when you work from home when people are actively in the zone and sweating their tails off. One of the major benefits of remote work is having the time to squeeze in exercise and healthier eating habits since you won’t be stuck in a daily commute.

  • Many people dream about living the tiny house bus life.
  • Long-standing research has shown that 72 percent of people who report having a “work bestie” are satisfied with their jobs, compared to 54 percent of those who don’t have a best friend at work.
  • This could be a channel to share tips for keeping those houseplants alive, swap recipes and dinner ideas, or talk about the books people are reading.
  • Maybe they’re overwhelmed with work and have no time for “the new guy” right now.
  • You will be surprised how friendly people are in other countries.
  • If you’re a manager, for example, your direct reports may not feel comfortable connecting with you on social media.

You’ll need to trust that your friends know you well enough to set you up on blind friend and romantic dates for this to work. And you have to show up for them or risk embarrassing and angering your friend responsible for the introduction. Your friends and family won’t know you’re looking to fill up your friend’s deck unless you tell them. So the first step to making more friends is actually committing to doing so. And this gives loneliness a chance to creep in and grow before you even realize it’s happening. If someone isn’t interested in chatting about anything beyond the project at hand, give them space and introduce yourself to another colleague. If you’re a bit of an introvert or you’re already at your computer screen, finding online interest groups is far easier than you anticipated.

Making real work friends when your work is virtual

Go out and hold a genuine conversation with at least one new person each day. I once landed on a former work wife’s doorstep in Nashville for a weeklong stay only to realize when I got there that https://remotemode.net/ we’d met in person exactly once. As infections dropped, people had somehow forgotten how to return to their normal lives. So now is the time to shed your COVID-induced anti-social behavior.

  • Schedule time to connect with like-minded individuals in your industry to expand your network and make friends.
  • However, it is evident you fostered friendships in different places.
  • Scheduling an informal chat is great, but this chat needs to be repeated for a friendship to develop.
  • In fact, making friends at work is important to productivity and happiness.
  • Starting by organizing a picnic for young people seeking friendship in New York, the website and app has now launched all around the U.S., with hopes to expand internationally.
  • I can’t grab an impromptu coffee or stop by someone’s desk.

You’ll not only have the chance to give back to your community, but you’ll also develop different skills and friendships from your experiences. Already being into the same hobby or activity means you’ll have common ground to kick off conversations with strangers that may lead to friendship. It’s just that most of their communication tends to happen online and not in real life. Meena Thiruvengadam is a writer and media entrepreneur whose specialties include advising newsrooms on digital strategy and helping other journalists upgrade their skills. She is currently based in Chicago but has also lived in New York, Washington, DC, London, and several places in between.

Yes, You Can Still Make Friends at Work If You’re Remote. Here’s How.

Dog parks and organized dog walks are an ideal way to meet other fur parents, talk about your pets, and maintain a more active lifestyle. If you weren’t sure how to make friends when you work from home, your baby or fur baby might be the answer you were looking for. Although children are a handful and can take up a ton of your time, they’re a great way for you to meet other parents. Whether you’re going to a scheduled mass play date or attending your kid’s sporting events, you can chat with other parents. At the very least, you have something in common as an icebreaker. Nothing says that you need to go out into the real world necessarily to learn how to make friends when you work from home. Sometimes, it’s the easiest and most obvious things that work better than others.

Making Friends If You Work Remotely

Speak up during Q&A sessions, or even when logging in and greeting everyone. You can ease this transition by arranging to meet in the office on a specific day and to get lunch together. You could also ask them questions about their weekend, interests, or any other details they might be willing to share.

Reconnect with old high school and college or university friends

Let’s say you heard a coworker Megan mention in the all-staff meeting that she was late because she was putting her kindergarten son on the school bus for the first time. After the meeting, send her a message telling her you know exactly how that feels – you just dropped your three-year-old off at her first day of daycare. Even the introverts among us have a need for some type of human connection at work. Long-standing research has shown that 72 percent of people who report having a “work bestie” are satisfied with their jobs, compared to 54 percent of those who don’t have a best friend at work. Reimagining Work It’s time to redefine how we construct our work days. How can we thrive at work without getting burned out?

Is working remotely unhealthy?

“When working remotely, we miss out on the social cues of a busy office and much needed social-interactions – catching up in the corridor, or making a drink in the kitchen while checking in and asking about the weekend,” she says. “These seemingly small moments can collectively have a large impact on our wellbeing.”

Pretty much all companies have a “random” or a “break room” Slack channel, but anyone who frequents it knows that the environment feels much more controlled than in real life. Often, you’ll notice that your work Slack is used for non-problematic small talk featuring memes, inside jokes, or gossip vaguely related to the office. Whether you’re one of the people who’s started a new job over the pandemic or you’re just someone with a few new teammates, this is especially why making friends at work is so important. You may not have to go to an office every day, but you can still go to lunch, grab a coffee, or head to a happy hour with local colleagues—or schedule time to do the same if you happen to be visiting.

Tiny House Bus Life – Digital Nomad Life on the Road

When I relocated to Italy, a local language and culture class was a daily and weekly shared space which was important in connecting me to the language and culture. There were people with various backgrounds with a myriad of reasons for relocating. Overall, this common space was important in fostering friendships in a new community. I’m 30 and moving from NYC to London with a remote job. I’m great at striking up a friendly and meaninful conversation, but find it challenging to take small talk to the friendship stage. Would love tips, advice, and anecdotal experiences in navigating how to turn small talk into a friendship. He first put together virtual social events, like online happy hours and scavenger hunts, and, starting in late March, added in-person meetups at safe outdoor venues in the Seattle metro area.

What is the biggest struggle with working remotely?

  • Remote work challenge: Social isolation.
  • Remote work challenge: Working across different time zones.
  • Remote work challenge: Distractions at home.
  • Remote work challenge: Building and maintaining strong company culture.
  • Remote work challenge: Lack of routine and time-management.
  • Remote work challenge: Poor work/life balance.