Thank you!

One thing I’d add is that if you’re working solo/virtually in an office by yourself, than it is important that you get away from the computer, take a walk, talk to other people. I make myself get away during lunch or in the morning and go to the gym – the exercise is good for the brain .. and going to a class connects me with people.

What helps them collaborate will towards a specific goal or main mission? I’d love to see pithy, practical you tackle that topic in a future post.

As a former WSJ reporter who now covers methods and success stories for accomplishing something greater together than we can alone (”Me2We”) I think your insights would be helpful to me and others.
– Another fan of CB blog

P.S. I’ve spoken at about 18 annual conferences of librarians – and love the lively interaction amongst avid readers and learners

The more I’ve been searching for community manager roles, the more remote positions I see. There is always hesitation, especially for someone who’s never been in a remote position before but feel confident in jumping into one, especially with the insight you’ve given here.

I think a big aspect is definitely having a rapport with the employer or manager before hand as you are losing that personal contact. Having that makes the communication between the two parties much smoother.

Admittedly, as my first position out of college, the isolation has at times been quite challenging. Working too many hours is certainly an easy trap to fall into and there are days when I won’t leave the house until after dinner.

Still, nearly two years in, I find the relative freedom and flexibility to be a serious upside. If coworkers want to idly chat you can simply ‘X’ out their IM box. Plus no commute!

That said, we have recently had a change in top management and for the first time I feel isolated. Over half of us, and all but one member of the management team, are remote. Communication with co-workers is key – whether to keep informed of overall activities (and the heartbeat of the organization) or to collaborate on a project, no matter how large or small.Unfortunately this is now thought to be a waste of time. I know my job, I do it well, and I have plenty of projects to keep me busy. I’m in constant communication with our members. But I feel like a one-man band.