How to Get Ready to Find a Remote Job

If the vacancies near you are not what you are looking for, or you simply want more control over where you work, it is worth looking at remote jobs. Remote work is no longer an emergency measure: for many employers it is now a permanent way of working, at least part of the week. But competition for fully remote roles is fierce, so it pays to prepare before you start applying.

What is remote work?

Remote work means doing your job for a company or clients away from their office or workplace. It relies on modern technology, and your results are delivered to your employer over the internet.

If you want to start working remotely, you can:

• look for a salaried job that allows remote working permanently, not just occasionally,
• become a freelancer and use your skills to work with clients in the UK and around the world (our freelance hourly rate calculator helps you price your work),
• set up your own business and organise it so that it can run remotely.

Remote work is often seen as a dream: working from a beach, sipping coffee in trendy cafés and travelling the world. That is possible, but most of the time it means long hours at home or in a coworking space. Of course, remote work has many advantages. It is often task-based rather than nine to five. If you are efficient and finish early, you have time for other things. You can see the doctor, go to the post office or get a haircut at times office workers can only dream of. A lot depends on what you agree with your employer or client, but remote work does bring a degree of flexibility. In practice, though, it demands self-discipline and excellent organisational skills.

How to prepare for remote work

Look after your personal social media

Your personal social media profiles are not as private as you might think. Remember that what you post online stays online. What is more, when you look for remote work you will often make contact with potential employers this way. Make sure there is nothing there you would be embarrassed about, and keep your professional profile up to date: here are 15 ways to use LinkedIn to get a job.

Work on how you organise your time

Every morning you get up and go through a series of routine steps to get to work on time. They form a kind of ritual that helps you get organised. But what if you work from home and have no fixed hours? The sun is shining and you want to go for a walk, or it is grey and drizzly, perfect for staying under a blanket with Netflix. Everything around you is tempting: the sink full of dishes is calling, and suddenly hoovering seems fascinating. Before you even start looking for remote work, try to build habits that help you organise your working day at home.

Build relationships

To make your job search easier, find conversations around the field you work in (or want to work in) and take an active part. Help, give advice, share a kind word. Let new people get to know you and be open to new contacts. That increases your chances of hearing about interesting opportunities.

Keep developing your skills

Remote roles attract applicants from all over the country, and sometimes from abroad, so competition for each vacancy is high. It pays to stand out with your skills. Look for online courses that complement your experience, or study programmes that can be completed remotely and give you an extra edge. Do not sit and wait for luck to strike. Take action!

Prepare for remote recruitment

Remote jobs are usually filled remotely too. Expect video calls and recorded interviews, and practise in advance with our guide to preparing for a video interview at home. Be careful as well: "work from home" adverts are a favourite tool of scammers, so learn the red flags of fake recruiters and never pay to get a job.

Follow your passion

Think about what you really enjoy doing. What makes you happy? Maybe it is worth retraining and doing something that puts a smile on your face. Remote work opens up new opportunities, because you are no longer limited to the jobs available where you live.

Remote work sometimes demands more commitment than a traditional office job. Even so, more and more people choose to earn a living this way, because it offers better chances of finding work that matches their skills and experience, plus plenty of flexibility and a sense of freedom. But to make it work, you need to prepare well. We hope these tips help you spread your wings and find your dream job. Good luck!

Ready to start? Browse current remote jobs on Jober.