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So You Want To Land A Remote Job? Start Here.

This article is more than 5 years old.

Matt Cobb, Co-Founder at Reedsy

Imagine your office is wherever you want it to be.

When your alarm rings in the morning, you don’t need to rush. You actually have time to check your emails over a homemade breakfast, instead of a morning commute. Best of all, you can work wherever you feel the most productive: some days, it might be your favourite cafe. Other days, it’s a co-working space (with a view).

Sound too good to be true? Well, this is the day-to-day of remote workers and digital nomads — those who work on the go.

If you’re like me not so long ago, you’re a remote lurker: reading the stories of these digital nomads with disbelief from the safety of your office desk. “This lifestyle is for the 5% — the app developers and the social media gurus of the world,” I used to think. Fast forward a little more than a year and I've quit my startup job in London to join a company that lets me work wherever I want.

Now that I’m on the other side, I realize that this life isn't an impossible mirage — if you know the right steps. The jobs for remote companies are real, but so is competition.  So how do you go from remote lurker to remote worker? Here are five tips to land your dream remote job.

1. Know the remote players

Like a nomad without access to Google Maps, you won't get very far if you're not familiar with the landscape of the remote world.

When it comes to remote work, you should know that you have two options: you can start your own business or join a fully-distributed (or partially-distributed) company. This article will focus on the latter.

A good first question to ask is: where can I find remote companies who are hiring? Nowadays, there are job boards that are specifically geared towards aspiring remote workers like you.

Start with weworkremotely, Remotive, Flexjobs, and Outsourcely, which will give you 600+ remote startups and plenty of tech and non-tech remote jobs to peruse.

Many companies that offer flexible work arrangements also advertise job postings on their own websites and general job directories. That means that you can hunt them down if you roll up your sleeves and do some extra research. Have a gander at AngelList, the top directory for startup jobs, or PowertoFly, which spotlights diversity and inclusion. Make use of the ‘remote’ filter on these jobs boards while you’re at it!

To be an active consumer of this content, note down your your ideal matches in a structured format. For the organizational enthusiasts out there, use a spreadsheet. In my own sheet, I listed my shortlist of remote companies and any information that would indicate the team was likely to grow soon — for instance, recent funding rounds and product launches.

Don’t forget to follow the founders and key team members on social media. But it’s not time to send your CV out just yet: you have to learn their language first.

2. Understand their culture

What matters most to remote companies? Here’s a hint: trust. When you’re an ocean away from your team, you need to trust people to get the work done. In practice, this means that remote companies will be looking to hire self-starters, great communicators — and people who fit seamlessly into the culture.

Let’s assume that you’ve got self-starter and great communicator down pat already. What you’re probably missing is the X factor: the company culture. You can remedy this by putting on your detective hat and digging beyond the job spec to get to know the team: what is their mission and how do you relate to it? Who are the founders? What’s their story? Why did they choose to go remote?

Remote companies make a point of sharing what they stand for and how they work online. They have no HQ walls to emblazon their mission statements, but they more than make up for it with prolific 'About' pages and company blogs. The Twitters of the company and team members can also be treasure troves of knowledge. Take note of the ways in which your future colleagues work together remotely — from the tools they use to communicate to the way they stay productive on the road. This insider knowledge will help come in handy later.

3. Hone the right skill

So you know the players. Now what do you have to offer?

As George Orwell might say, “All skills are equal, but some skills are more equal than others.” In the remote world, it's true that many jobs are tech-oriented. But you shouldn't let that stop you: non-tech skills from marketing to design are also in demand. So how do you find the right skill to focus on? Ask yourself:

  • What am I good at?
  • What do I love to do?
  • What will people pay for?

The intersection of this golden triangle is your ‘sweet spot,’ a term coined by Natalie Sisson, author of The Suitcase Entrepreneur.

Let's cut to Zoe. Zoe is an account manager at an advertising agency who spends much of the day dealing with demanding clients. What she enjoys the most, though, is the part where she gets to create visual presentations to help people digest complex data. That, and she's already started practicing web-design on the side. Her sweet spot could point her towards a UX designer role at a remote agency. Note that Zoe already holds an advantage over a junior designer: her soft skills are transferable. If she can build upon this existing strength — and further develop her other skills — she'd be a strong applicant.

There are ways to go about this without breaking the bank. Consider leveraging your existing role: take on that new project in the office, for instance. Or go the extra mile to collaborate with another team and expose yourself to their work. You can also start a side project. If you go this route, heed this advice from Spotify’s former Design Lead: your side project should be stupid. That’s right. Don’t overthink the details. Just start. The whole point is to learn as you go.

4.  Don’t be a stranger

Your future remote employer may never meet you in real life. Scary, right?  Now imagine how much easier it’d be if you could get them to like you before that first Skype interview.

Yes, I’m talking about building your personal brand. If I Google your name, I should get a sense of who you are — and your last holiday pictures don’t count.

Make it easy for employers to get a feel for your skills and personality. Talk about projects you’ve started on a blog. Track the progress of skills you’re actively learning. Show expertise and passion for the topics you care about, so that your potential remote employer can easily see how you might apply them to a job.

If blogging isn’t for you, make social media your ally. It worked for me. When I spotted Reedsy on AngelList for the first time, they weren’t hiring at the moment. So I followed the co-founders on social media and sat tight. Six months later, a tweet from their CEO grabbed my attention. I replied. A few minutes later, I received an email: ‘Hi Mathilde! We’re growing the team again. Are you interested?’ Voilà: a head start to apply for my dream role.

Serendipity won’t always work its magic — but making every effort to connect with remote companies on their platform of choice might just create that first spark.

5. Be proactive

So you’ve got your shortlist. You feel confident about your profile and skills. Now let’s get down to business: applying.

In the competitive remote space, you need a little more than a CV to stand out, so forget about the ‘apply and wait’ mindset that you might have used in previous job hunts. It’s time to action all of your accumulated knowledge from the previous steps.

First, think of creative ways to leverage your network. Similarly to traditional jobs, a referral can go a long way, so don’t overlook the power of who you know. Linkedin can be useful if you need help spotting any common connections between you and your future boss. You can also reach out to contacts who are currently working in the role you’re eyeing. Ask them what skills they think are key to succeed in the role and highlight these when you make contact with the company.

In addition to applying the ‘traditional route,’ consider sending a personal message to the founder or team lead. As busy as they might be, a targeted email can get you noticed — especially if you show why you will fit in their unique remote culture. Just keep in mind that your message shouldn’t be you-centric. Instead, prove how you could add value to them. Demonstrate that you understand the team’s objectives and challenges. Describe what you’d do if you were hired tomorrow. Or create something they can use right away: a blog post, a proposed marketing plan, or an improved design.

Don't feel as though you need to wait until the job spec is out to use this strategy. If you take the initiative to reach out, you’ll put yourself on the team’s radar and potentially be the first to learn about new job openings — before they even become public. And once that interview (or informal chat) has popped up in your calendar, you’ll know that you’re armed and ready with all the research you’ve done. So keep calm, hunt down good WiFi and smile: you’re almost there!

Landing a remote job isn’t an impossible mission: it just requires a proactive mindset and the right level of preparation. Can you find the roles and teams that truly align with your skills, values and work habits? There’s only one way to find out: put that commute time to good use, and start looking around.

 

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