It is perhaps not surprising to learn that employees can struggle to work effectively during the summer, when there is the distraction of warm or even hot summer days, accompanied in many regions by high humidity that makes for uncomfortably sticky afternoons, evenings and nights.

For instance, British workers are traditionally less productive during the summertime, according to a new study. One in four employees said that they only worked to full capacity for one day and then coasted through the rest of the week. In the U.S., 25 percent of office workers felt their productivity decreased in the summertime, with arguments often ensuing as to what the optimum workplace temperature should be.

A number of factors have been identified as contributing to the problem. People understandably want to take advantage of the better weather. Going out for a business lunch al fresco in a local restaurant or cafe, perhaps accompanied by a glass of beer or wine (rather than opting for a takeout or sandwich to eat at one's desk), can lead to a more soporific afternoon with a corresponding reduction in an appetite for work.

Similarly, the option of meeting friends earlier in the evening for drinks or attending a ball game or outside music concert can also compete for employees' attention, while during winter months they may opt to spend a little longer completing a task or project. Furthermore, many workers elect to take periods of time off for vacations during this time of year, further exacerbating the situation.

Stuffy offices caused by poor ventilation or a lack of good air conditioning can also cause people to struggle to keep cool, leading to the understandable drawback of poor concentration on work. Human beings tend to perform best in a very limited range of environmental conditions (70-72°F being optimum) - even a slight deviation outside these limits can have an adverse impact on performance.

One option that could help resolve many of these challenges is to provide employees with the flexibility to get their work done when they feel they are best able to - perhaps earlier or later in the day. Many Mediterranean countries have long recognized that noon to mid-afternoon is often uncomfortable for work - hence the introduction of the siesta.

With the increasingly widespread adoption of mobile devices and smartphones, it is even easier for employees to remain connected and work from anywhere as they try to keep cool. By adopting a similar (though less formal and institutionalized) approach, employees would have the freedom to work during cooler parts of the day, take a longer lunch, enjoy a cold beer and even have a swim, knowing they are on track to get the job done - while still having fun and enjoying the summer sun!

Photo Credit: cam.riley

I love England. It may not be exotic, but it's one of my favorite countries in the world. And this year I've been lucky enough to spend about 3 months here on and off. Last year around this same time I did a post about workshifting while in England. I decided to shoot an update post with some tips, tricks and hacks to show you how to workshift here most effectively.


If you can't view the video below, you can watch it over on YouTube.

Got any tips about workshifting in England? I'd love to hear 'em in the comments.

People that work for themselves know their time is valuable. If they've a head for business, they know precisely what an hour of their time is worth, and their monthly revenue objectives. Really good businesspeople even know how much developmental or non-revenue-generating work they can take on each month or quarter before the law of diminishing returns takes over and risk sets in. The line between "income now" and "potential income later" can be a narrow one. So what type of client opportunity should you think twice about?

The Carrot and the Stick

It can be a tough lesson, especially in the early days of business, to learn the difference between clients that just want a job done, and clients interested in your expertise. Maybe you can nudge a few in the former category into the latter category, but at what cost? Will you have to reduce your rate or submit a reduced estimate to get the client to approve the new scope? Change your terms? Knock off a few features (perhaps prudent now, but may lead to remorse later)?

Sometimes you can reap rewards from giving - investing - concierge-level service and bestowing add-ons to clients, the type that favor such consultants with repeat business or a referral. Other times your hard work and diminished profits become a pawn in the game. Any derivative of "If you can give us xxx at a discount this time, I'll have a case for sending you more work" should prompt you to stand, shake hands, and excuse yourself from the meeting, pronto.

"Just Get It Done" Clients

This tire-kicker type is often price-sensitive - possibly for the sole purpose of wielding control. He may or may not have been burned by a freelancer previously (real or imagined injustice). He has trouble seeing beyond the top layer of a problem and, frankly, has little interest in your cautions about the framework underlying the project or ancillary issues. He usually wants things done his way: quickly, cheaply, and with little disruption to his personal schedule. This type of client likes boxes checked rather than real solutions.

Pay special attention to any of these behaviors:

• Difficulty meeting by phone to go over your questions
• Incomplete or nonexistent project brief
• Email replies that lack substance (did he even read your questions?)
• Ridiculous timelines (surely they knew they were set to launch a new product before now?)
• The "Hot Handoff", i.e., "We had someone helping us but we fired them because..."
• Initial inquiries that begin with "How much would it cost us to...?"

If you have some extra time on your hands or think you can piece together enough information from this guy to do a quality job that A) won't become a time suck and B) won't bite you later, then these clients could boost bottom-line monthly revenues. You just suffer a little metaphorical blood loss in the process.

Next time we'll look at dreamy "What Do You Think?" type clients, the ones that, regardless of their size and income statement, look for fresh ideas and value-learned opinions, even from little old you.

Meanwhile, keep your antennae up and listen to your instincts.

Photo Credit jkunz

Coworking spaces are popping up all over the place these days, in rural areas as well as town and city centers. If you're used to working at home alone, like me, you might wonder how on earth you could possibly work surrounded by people you don't know and who have no connection with your business.

Don't let doubts like these put you off, as coworking can both brighten up your usual routine and give you a supportive network - without requiring you to go to any events!

Here are some tips to help you acclimatize to coworking:

Check out the space - If you're lucky enough to have a choice of coworking spaces, check out each one (they often offer a free trial) for factors such as facilities, atmosphere, noise and levels of interaction. Choose the one most suited to your business requirements, personality and whether you simply want another place to work or to become part of a community.

Introduce yourself straightaway - As it can be awkward to do so later when you've been working alongside people for a while. Take in some snacks to hand round if you're a bit shy about doing this and not only will you get to meet everybody but youll be guaranteed instant popularity.

Take headphones - If you prefer working in silence you might be distracted at first by people moving around the space and talking on the phone or face to face. Bring in headphones so you can play your own music or one of the white noise apps; do try not to hum along!

Start with easy tasks - If you're worried about being distracted, at first just take along some routine work that doesn't require massive concentration. It's the ideal time to do that computer housekeeping you've been meaning to get round to, or research to keep up with your industry. You will adapt to being surrounded by activity and gradually be able to introduce jobs needing more application.

Learn the phone policy - Make sure you know the policy on dealing with phone calls and follow it. That may mean leaving the room to take a call or simply keeping your voice down. It shows consideration if you put your phone on the Meeting setting so that your colleagues don't have to listen repeatedly to your ring tone.

Chat a bit - Don't feel guilty about spending time chatting and view it instead as relationship building. You'll be amazed how much information and advice emerges from these casual exchanges and they can give you enough inspiration to last the rest of the week. And you never know who might be a potential partner - one of your coworkers might be actively looking for just your skills.

The great thing about coworking is that you can choose how much or how little you want to participate, and slot it into your routine where it fits best. Good luck in finding your own perfect balance for maximum happiness and efficiency, and I'd love to hear your own tips for acclimatizing.

Photo Credit: khawkins04

I'm no neat freak, but every now and then I am compelled to do something about all the paper in my "paperless" office.

Some stuff is easy to get rid of. During the great office purge of 2009, I threw out dozens of software manuals (just the fact that I had software manuals tells you how old they were), boxes of 3.5 inch diskettes, backup tapes I couldn't read if I wanted to, and reams of obsolete writing samples from clients of long ago.

That freed up closet space, shelf space and filing-cabinet space for a while. But eventually my filing cabinet was crammed again--and something had to give.

The problem: Much of what was left to go was confidential material. Proprietary client documents, bank records, old checks, business invoices and a decade of tax documents. While I have a shredder, I'm not set up to shred in bulk. Plus I'd really prefer a mulch-creating shredder to my inexpensive crosscut one when it comes to my privacy.

Options

The District of Columbia has a shredding program as part of its awesome hazmat disposal service--but they don't appear willing to shred on site.

Office Depot will shred on site, but they're not cheap if you have volume.

Then I learned from my neighbor Steve Stern that one local company will bring a truck to your location and shred 10 boxes for $95. A great deal--but my office isn't that out of control.

The Solution: Community

I might not have 10 boxes, but my "community" does. Stern is a financial advisor, which means just about every piece of paper coming through his office is confidential. He has seven boxes ready to go. I have another two. And a friend of mine is happy to unload another box or two of old documents.

I'm discovering that there's a lot of satisfaction in a good purge. Does your community need a shredding day? Have you purged your papers lately?

Photo Credit: umpqua

Recently while I was in a hotel room in Tusayan, Arizona, the sun was coming up around 8a. The family's asleep, internal clocks still set to Eastern Time.

So was mine, but I had been online for the better part of 3 hours.

As a writer, my work travels with me to wherever my laptop-in-tow sniffs out an Internet connection. That day, that was 5 miles from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

I emailed editors back East, scheduled some interviews for when we return, written a client blog and Facebook note about our adventures and reviewed the Nikon D3100 digital SLR that's chronicled almost every moment of our trip.

A fairly full morning from a quiet hotel room

My clients often wonder aloud why I "work" while on family getaways. They chide me, though their comments are offered as gentle, constructive advice about powering down. They're not suggesting I just turn off the laptop now, but that I disconnect in the greater sense - from work while away. Absorb the vacation, they say. Get into the moment.

Twenty-two years into workshifting, almost 20 years navigating that intersection where home-based entrepreneurship meets parenthood - and just as many years spent traveling with family and work in tow - I've discovered a thing or two about getting into the moment. I realized long ago it's a deeply personal thing, ingrained into each of our DNA.

Frankly, my moment comes before the first family member stirs in the morning. By the time they'll awaken today, I'll have logged more than 1,000 words of varying sorts - both billable and non-billable. They'll be none the wiser; my clients will feel, well, if not "lucky," then thankful that I delivered their project (even though I warned them before leaving home that I would NOT be working - and IF I happened to deliver work, then that would not be an invitation for them to open the floodgates to more requests or obligations).

Workationing is about managing expectations - of family, of clients, of yourself

I don't push the issue with the family, though as the children of an entrepreneur, my kids can connect the dots between work, paycheck and vacations. As for myself, I abide by the limit we seem to have worked out here: once the family is awake, the laptop soon closes, likely until we hunker down for the night. Then my time is my own again.

So working from the road means different things to different people. To me, it's about finding balance in life and work - and frankly, I love what I do. As a writer, I enjoy the writing and editing process. I find catharsis in creativity and release in the moment I hit Send to deliver a finished product. I feel blessed that freelancing affords me the chance - or shall I say, the freedom - to pursue my career from anywhere: a hotel room near the Grand Canyon, a lodge in the Ozark Mountains, or a cruise ship in the Caribbean.

As the family awakens, it's time to power down (the laptop, not my workshifting). I still have my BlackBerry; I still get work emails and correspondence in need of response. And I respond. My family won't chide me if I peek and reply here and there.

They're OK with that.

And so am I.

Photo Credit: chrissam42

President Obama, the self-titled Teleworker-in-Chief, declared at a recent workplace flexibility forum that "work is what you do, not where you do it."

It's no wonder then that out of every possible work sector, the Federal Government takes the crown for workshifting. Although they don't have the most remote workers, their numbers have been growing the fastest, and to top it off, they have the highest participation rate among their employees.

The Feds have the Telework Enhancement Act to thank for this surprising growth. Passed back in December, the Act just had its first deadline recently: all government employees were to be told of their eligibility status for workshifting.

That's quite the step. Imagine if your employer told everyone who could workshift (around 45 percent of the total workforce) that that they could now do so? We'd likely see change just as fast as what the government is experiencing.

To make things easier for everybody, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) recently released a guide to teleworking. The 40 pages of light reading explain just what the agencies should do to fully implement workshifting policies of their own.

For everyone else, the guide is an excellent resource for what you can expect from a comprehensive workshifting policy. It covers all the bases, from explaining how to workshift regularly to describing the specifics of manager-employee agreements.

Since the government has already done the work for everyone, both current and prospective workshifters should take advantage of this manual the best they can. Here are a few quick tips from the guide.

Clear and usable policies

A teleworking policy should be written simply with familiar words, so staff across every department can easily understand it. The policy should also explain the steps to implement workshifting, the responsibilities of those involved and the day-to-day operations themselves.

Eligibility and participation

Instead of suggesting a generic one-size-fits-all category for who is eligible to workshift, managers should base their decision on employee performance - and refuse poor performers.

Training

A training website has been provided by OPM to help both employees and managers understand the new practice. And fortunately, Telework 101 is open for everyone to use.

Agreement

Make the agreement renewable, and include items such as the work schedule the employee will follow, responsibilities, information security and equipment needed. A signed agreement should be mandatory.

Good communication

Managers and employees should have an actual face-to-face discussion before starting a workshifting arrangement to settle each other's expectations. And while workshifting, both managers and employees must keep each other informed of any progress or changes. Also, workshifters should not be excluded from discussions simply because they are not physically in the office.

The manual is quite long, but don't let that stop you from using it. Even the most experienced workshifter might learn something new. And if you've come across any other helpful guides to workshifting that you think can help others, be sure to include them down below in the comments.

Workshifting is not always a solo act. In many cases, you work as part of a team of people who are in geographically diverse locations. And sometimes, you're in charge of those teams. Managing people can be challenging at the best of times, but when you can't be in the same room with them you face even bigger obstacles. Misunderstandings arise much easier when you can't look someone in the eye, and it can be much more difficult to track individual progress.

Here are some things I've learned about managing when your team is located in multiple locations. 

Be Flexible with Schedules

One of the things that people like best about workshifting is that they have the opportunity to set their own hours. Some people are morning people, some work best in the afternoons, and some are night owls. Giving your team the flexibility to choose their ideal work hours can be a really effective perk. It allows people to work at the times that work best for them, but ultimately it allows them to be more productive. And it works well for me as a leader, too. If I have a team member that likes to work late at night, and I'm a morning person, then I know that deliverables will be in my inbox when I get to my desk in the morning. Of course, being flexible with schedules works both ways. If I DO occasionally need someone to be available for a morning client meeting, then planning that in advance ensures it can happen. The important thing is to discuss schedules in advance, so all parties know what to expect. And if things change, then nobody is thrown off completely.

It's All in the Details

The biggest issue with working remotely is that you have to rely on remote forms of communication. In an office environment, you can just call someone into your office, have a quick chat, and send them off with their tasks. But in the workshifting world, these conversations have to happen over email, instant message, or the phone. By removing the physical presence from the equation, there's a risk that tone and sentiment can be lost, and the finer details can get confused or overlooked.

There are a few ways to combat this. First, try to find ways to connect face to face when you can. Video chat is becoming more accessible for people, so using video chat or setting up a virtual meeting for your team can be a great way to connect with people face to face when you need to. And always follow up these conversations with an email to the team that captures the highlights of what needs to be done. Then, keep the lines of communication open - literally; be available via chat or phone so that team members can contact you right away if they need clarification or have a question.

Use Collaboration Tools

It's wonderful that we have so many tools available to us now to help us communicate and collaborate remotely. I can't stress enough how important file sharing and collaboration tools are for running effective teams. Email was once our only choice for file sharing, and it was wildly ineffective. File attachments were too large to email. Version control was nearly impossible. Things went missing and much time and money were wasted.

These days, tools like Google Docs and Google Calendar are brilliant ways to share information among teams and maintain current versions of information that everyone can contribute to. Dropbox is a wonderful method to share larger files like videos or graphics without bogging down people's emails. These tools also allow you, as a manager, to track peoples' progress in real time, without "bugging" them for updates continuously, because you can access the most current versions of whatever is being worked on. Using collaborative tools will save huge amounts of time and help your team be more creative on the fly. And we could all use less email, right?

These are just a few ways to help you run projects more smoothly in the workshifting world. What it really comes down to is communication. Be clear in your instructions, flexible in your scheduling, and communicate well, and you will have a happy and productive remote team.

Photo Credit: C.C. Chapman

By this point, if you are workshifting you have either earned the ability from an employer or chosen the path yourself as an independent workshifter.

And, although workshifting is becoming more and more accepted and valued among traditional employers - sometimes, getting to a workshifting position is not the most difficult step on the path.

Having transitioned from a fully-traditional position to a bona-fide workshifter with the same organization, and with little to no guidance on the what-when-and-how of workshifting expectations by this organization, I initially found myself in a world of uncertainty and self-doubt!

Time tracking, defining project scope and deadlines and "showing up" virtually were not the issues - I knew that the quality of my work would not suffer whether I did it chained to an office desk or on my leather sofa. What I did not know, however, was how my output was being perceived simply because the work was being done remotely. Out of sight, out of mind? Offsite and unreliable?

So, I took some steps to ensure that my efforts were recognized and I instilled, from the outset, an inherent trust in my capacity to work remotely without adversely affecting the organization. I knew I could be counted on, but others needed to know it, too.

To whom much is given, even more is expected! The one step I took to ensure that, as a new workshifter, I could be trusted, was to OVERcommunicate in the following ways:

• Inclusively: Not only were pertinent email CCs necessary, but I took it one step further and provided a weekly summary and monthly time sheet with detailed logs of what and whom I had handled. Sure, it took time for me to track, and often a measure of precision to report on exactly how my time was being spent, but it also ensured that my time could never be questioned by my superior nor his, in spite of the fact that the results spoke for themselves.
  
  
• With Honesty: In the same way I reported what I was doing to produce work and results, I similarly and candidly reported when I would be away from my home office and/or taking time during the day to handle non-work tasks. At the same time, I set clear expectations about the alternative hours I would keep on those days to make up the time and ensure that my results were met.
  
  
• Selflessly and Flexibility: If the goal of my new schedule was 100% flexibility, I recognized my threshold of tolerance (translation: what I was willing to concede) and knew that its cap was roughly 80% - this left room for any unscheduled or impromptu meetings or projects that would require on-site presence without completely disrupting my sense of autonomy and freedom.

What is the one step you've taken to ensure trust as a workshifter?

Photo Credit: vagawi

Several years ago, I wrote about the role of impromptu telework after an ice storm shut down parts of North Carolina. For those caught without power, workshifting was an effective, albeit makeshift, solution to keep themselves productive when Mother Nature did her worst.

Visiting Los Angeles this week with my family, I discovered first-hand how traffic is a crab walk here at the best of times. Having heard our trouble, a friend who commutes daily from Santa Monica to Beverly Hills added that the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority would soon be shutting down 10 miles of Interstate 405 for 53 hours to tear down an overpass.

The closure, scheduled for July 16 and 17, is expected to affect a half-million drivers. Few believe officials' promises that it will be completed by Monday morning's rush hour. Many are anticipating traffic chaos that will dwarf the usual snarl.

Some are already preparing for what's being likened to as a Northeast pre-planned "snow day." Rumor has it many commuters with a choice are planning long weekend getaways and mini-vacations.

Think about the lost productivity.

Why not workshift instead?

Why not plan ahead, discuss the situation with employers, employees and coworkers, arrange to bring home work that can be done outside the corporate office, and avoid the snarl - and excuses - altogether?

Alternatively, find or create a telework center or temporary workspace where people can continue working without having to traverse the affected 10-mile zone. It could be an executive suite or idle space at a peer's location. Contact your attorney, accountant or other professional services firm to see if space may be available.

Then, assuming this impromptu telework "pilot project" or telework center experiment succeeds, explore expanding it into a regular telework program. All it takes for most will be a computer with Internet access, relatively comfortable workspaces and a mind open to new possibilities.

The company may benefit from increased productivity - in both good times and bad - beyond this one-time opportunity. Next time construction (or poor weather or an earthquake) shuts down an interstate or otherwise makes transportation impossible, people in unaffected areas can continue working.

As we were traversing the L.A. freeways this week, we were aghast at how long it took to drive even a short distance. It would seem L.A. and workshifting were made for each other - even without the impending chaos of a 10-mile closure of the 405.

Photo Credit: Bugsy Rocker

During the long weekend when we celebrated American Independence Day, I came across an interesting report that made me start to wonder about the cost of people trying to realize the great American Dream. The report, summarized by Harry Bradford in the Huffington Post, notes that top level professionals now view the 40-hour work week as part time. Working less than this is widely recognized as career suicide, leading to less prestigious and less upwardly mobile career paths. Essentially people are working about 30% longer, so that 50 hours a week or more is now becoming the norm; yet for many, incomes have not kept pace.

Most of us recognize that the report is simply providing data in support of what we have been experiencing for a while - our approach to work-life and work-family balance has changed significantly over the last decade. The lines between work and personal time are fading and will almost certainly disappear. With the relentless consumerization of technology, the proliferation of mobile devices, and the rise of social business, we are effectively always connected, always on and always available, which translates to always being potentially 'at work' even if we are not physically in a formal office.

These trends should, however, be ringing alarm bells in that one has to question the extent to which this is sustainable and why management practices are so outdated. Contemporary research into the human brain shows that the worst kind of stress is the feeling that you have no control over the problem, that you are helpless. Dr. John Medina notes in his best-selling book, Brain Rules, that emotional stress has huge impacts across society, from children's ability to learn in school to employees' productivity at work. Could it be that we are working longer hours and yet becoming less productive because of associated stress-related causes? Does this reflect a lack of independence for Americans from a working practices perspective?

One way employers could help alleviate the stress of professionals working longer hours is to give them the flexibility to manage their working day as any time during their waking day. We all have a span of time available each day from the time we wake to the time we go to sleep. By allowing individuals to determine for themselves how they prioritize different tasks that need to get done in that period of time, stress can be reduced, people become more productive and a new form of sustainability introduced. If the Class of 2011 is to be able to realize their American dreams, something has got to change. Maybe it is time for a new form of American independence!

One of the tools that makes our workshifting lifestyle possible is video. We already spend a good chunk of time using our webcams in video conferences and online meetings, but it's now becoming more commonplace for us to use video to enhance our blogs and websites or to facilitate remote knowledge transfer by producing training clips. Video is a wonderful medium because it allows us to communicate so effectively in so many ways.

I've been a television producer for more than 20 years. I've lived through the amazing transformation from a time when video was expensive and time-consuming to today, when anyone with a decent camera and a few spare minutes can produce content. Since we're using video so much nowadays, I thought it might be useful to pass along a few things I've learned in the video production business that can help to ensure your webcam video is the best it can be.

Lights, Camera - and More Lights!

The number one issue I see with most webcam video is lighting. You see, little webcams, as good as they are, don't respond well in low light. Yet, so often we see video where the only lighting source is the bluish glow of the computer screen or the dim orange hue of a light bulb. The one thing you can do to up the quality of any webcam video is to shed a little light on the subject - literally.

You don't need fancy production lights to achieve a nicely lit picture. There are a couple of options - if you're lucky enough to work in an office with a big window, turn your computer so that you are facing the window. If it's a bright, sunny day, diffuse the light a bit by using shears on your window so that you're not too squinty or shadowy. If you're like me and work in a basement office, then you'll need to rely on other light sources. I use a cheap lamp that has a bendable neck, which I position about 8 inches off to one side of my computer screen. It casts a nice glow that isn't too bright, making my video look a lot cleaner.

Watch Your Back

Another common mistake I see is that people shoot their video without paying attention to what's behind them. There could be a very cluttered, messy desk or bookcase, private photos you don't want the world to see or worse yet, a window. If you're looking to present a professional view of yourself in a client meeting, on a webinar or on your video blog, clean up your office area (or at least the part that will be in the background). Remove any photos or documents that you would rather people not see and definitely don't face your camera towards a window (unless it's nighttime or the drapes or blinds are completely closed), or else people won't see anything but a silhouette.

Frame It Up

Have you ever noticed how some people on webcams just look strange? It's usually because the shot is framed wrong. The camera is either too low, so we see up their noses, or it's too high, so we see down onto the top of their head. Other times there's either too much space in the area above their faces or the frame cuts the top of their heads off. The rule of thumb for good framing is this: make sure the camera lens is as close to your eye level as possible. If that means you have to mount your camera on some books or the top of your computer or put your chair up higher, then do it - it makes a big difference. And position your video frame so that your eyes line up to about 1/3 of the way down the screen - that ensures the right amount of space between the top of your head and the video frame (the pros call this "headroom").

Sound Clear as a Bell

Audio is just as important as video, so once you have your webcam shot looking good, make sure you can be heard clearly. Turn off the music and the washing machine. Put the dog in his kennel or outside so he doesn't decide to play with his squeaky toy during your webinar. Invest in a decent microphone (the one on your computer isn't always the greatest). You can opt for a headset microphone (get one in the $60-$90 price range, and you're doing well), or you can get one of the great USB mics that podcasters use. Having good sound will make all the difference in the quality of what you present.

Those are just a few tips from the pros that will help you make better webcam videos. Try these out and let me know how it goes!

Photo Credit: mofetos