There’s a point in your life when you say: enough. Enough to the 9-5, long commute, and annoying water-cooler chitchat.
There has to be a better way.
That’s how most of us get into working remote, anyway. Maybe your reason was different. But no matter what made you decide to work from home (or from Bali one week, and Chiang Mai the next), it isn’t easy.
There are plenty of mistakes you can make when looking for a remote job. Luckily, we’ve made most of them, and we’re here to help you.
So here’s five common mistakes you might make, and how you can nip them in the bud.
1) Not knowing what truly motivates you
There’s a lot of remote jobs so you may feel pressured to just choose, and deal with the consequences.
However, if you don’t understand what kind of work truly energizes and motivates you, you’ll apply for jobs you don’t want to do. You won’t come across as the right candidate in the interview.
And even if you do get the job, you won’t be happy about your decision to work remotely.
In return, your output and the quality of what you do will suck.
What can you do to avoid this remote job mistake?
Focus on the type of work that easily gets you into the “flow state.” You’ll recognize it when you forget about the time and focus on the work you’re doing.
You can also use a motivational assessment app like Fingerprint for Success to find out what your talents are, and from there, figure out what type of remote job is the best fit for you.
2) Not optimizing your LinkedIn profile
LinkedIn is definitely one of the best ways you can find a remote job. However, it’s important to use it the right way.
If you treat LinkedIn like Facebook for business, and leave it to collect dust in your inbox, you’ll close one very important door for yourself.
It’s not enough to just write “expert in [your field]” in your description and call it a day.
When a potential employer sees that, they’ll just see another one highly-qualified number applying for a job. There’s millions of applications pouring in for great remote jobs, so you want to stand out from the get-go.
What can you do to avoid this remote job mistake?
Up-level your LinkedIn profile, stat!
Forget about writing long summaries. Instead, write about your skills and the results you’ve achieved in prior positions in 1-2 sentences at most, and finish the summary with a call to action such as: “Schedule a call.”
You can also actively seek out opportunities through LinkedIn, and connect with people in your industry. Like LinkedIn themselves say: “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” and that honestly couldn’t be more true in the world of remote work.
3) Not optimizing your resume
Employers dread going through applications and resumes. So if you send in a resume that’s boring, has too much text, and isn’t eye-catching at all, your chances of landing that remote job you’ve always wanted will decrease.
The same goes for adding a garden variety of work experiences. Does your potential employer really need to know about the time you worked in retail?
What can you do to avoid this remote job mistake?
Optimize your resume before sending it.
Every. Single. Time.
Most people are too ‘lazy’ to do this, but modifying your resume to include keywords from the position you’re applying for can do wonders.
For example, if you’re applying for the position of a content marketer, you want to speak about relevant work experience (e.g. marketing internship, experience in advertising), and also list the key soft skills the remote company mentions in their job posting (only if you honestly have them, of course).
Keep the text to a minimum; trim the ‘fat’ wherever possible and include key power words to increase your impact. Try to explain your most significant achievements and responsibilities in 1-2 sentences.
Another good touch is to turn the “Objective” category at the top of your resume on its head, by writing a personal summary statement that drips and oozes with your own personality.
4) Not applying because you think you aren’t qualified
You don’t have to be 100% qualified for a job to apply for it. In fact, that rarely happens in real life.
Employers love setting high standards so they attract high-quality candidates, but you don’t need to have all the skills listed in the job description to be a great hire.
We’re talking to you, ladies, in particular. It seems like women only apply for jobs when they feel 100% qualified (with men, it’s 60%).
What can you do to avoid this remote job mistake?
If you want to land a great remote job, forget about being the perfect candidate. Having all the skills listed in the job description doesn’t make you one. Your approach does.
Emphasize your relevant experience and your ability to learn (if there are some technical skills needed). Even if you have only done a few brief projects in the area of work you’re applying for, highlight those projects, the results you got, and specifically why you loved working on them. Showing genuine enthusiasm and motivation here can get you extremely far.
In the end, you can’t lose anything by applying, and you stand to gain a lot. At the very least, you could be opening doors for the future, or even learn about a different position at the company that might be a better fit!
5) Not negotiating a higher salary
It’s horrible to feel underpaid. Even if you’re just starting out, feeling underpaid can make you feel miserable.
And you already know the rest of the story: you won’t produce quality work, and you’ll get demotivated before you can say: “Remote work is awesome!”
What can you do to avoid this remote job mistake?
Even if the job description doesn’t mention anything about salary being negotiable, be brave enough to ask. Men are especially great at this in a lot of cases, so we stand to learn something from them.
Employers rarely state their actual budgets. Instead, they have a margin for the perfect hires. And if you know your employer really values you and wants to either hire or retain you, emphasize your past results and ask for a higher salary.
Looking for a remote job is only hard if you don’t focus on the right things. So if you love the freedom of not being stuck in an office, learn to love the process of asking for the things you want.
Happy job hunting!
xx Stina 💛
