How to Get a Remote Job: Part 2

This is part 2 of our mini series which will guide you step by step how to land a remote job. It is recommended you read the previous article and complete the checklist before continuing here.

So now, tell me.

  • What are you good at?
  • What do you enjoy doing?
  • Can any of that be monetized?
  • What will I see if I google your name?
  • Can you show me examples of your previous work?

These are the questions you should definitely have answers to before we are done here.

They are tough questions to answer, too. I know.

But you know what? These are essential. If someone asks what kind of remote job you are looking for and you answer “oh, just about any“ - you are already doomed. And you are going to the nope pile.

So let’s assume for a while that you have completed our little homework from the previous article. You have been studying your industry carefully. Listening and learning from the top personas for some time now. You know whats up.

It’s time to build stuff.

Your online footprint

CVs and cover letters are nice. But they are not gonna cut it for you when it comes to remote work.

Remember - companies are taking big risks when hiring someone remotely. The amount of time and resources invested into picking the right candidate is not negligible. The amount of time and resources invested into picking the wrong candidate, having to start the process over again, is huge - while the work is just piling up. It may even discourage them from hiring remotely in the future all together.

In other words, there has to be a mutual attraction from the beginning.

List of things your potential future remote employer should definitely find when they are gonna google your ass: (and they will)

Your little internet corner

You may think the age of personal blogs and websites is gone, lost in the 90s and early 2000s. Replaced by unified experience on LinkedIn, Twitter and other social networks. But it’s not. With so many candidates hunting for remote jobs, it is more than ever important to differentiate yourself.

One great essay is all that separates you from getting hired remotely in top companies of your field.

Create your online business card on AboutMe. Start new blog on WordPress. Make new Ghost page. Build your fancy site on Carrd. Make your website from scratch. It’s up to you. The important message is build something of your own.

Your social media

Now. We don’t suggest you make it easy for your potential employer to find pictures from your last romantic getaway or island hopping. On the contrary - make your social accounts as private as possible for the general public. But! At the same time, make it possible for people to find you. It makes you look more legit.

Why? Because what do you do when you get an offer from a company you didn’t hear before? You look them up online. Gives you the confirmation you need before starting any kind of business with them.

Going the Extra Mile

We strongly encourage you to create extra account for your professional alter-ego and share your journey here. Things you’ve already learned on the way and other niche-related bits n bites. You will eventually attract your own audience which will help you immensely.

Pick the platform typical for your industry.

Marketer? Probably give Twitter a shot. Photographer? Instagram or maybe YouTube/Vimeo. Coder? Github. Designer? Dribble. Translator? Translators café. You get the idea right.

Showcasing your work

This is the perfect job for your website. Slam Showcase button to your main menu and create a gallery/list with all your recent work.

Use external services to host if needed. Youtube, Vimeo, Instagram, Github, Medium. Based on your industry. You know the drill.

This can be you recent client work, cool side projects, university projects you are really proud of, content you made during your last gig. Careful with the last one as there could be some copyright issues depending on your contract.

Don’t have any recent work? Make some.

Look for websites in your niche with weak copy, bad graphics or slow loading time and remake them on your own. Create a valid social media strategy and offer it to local restaurant which is clearly struggling in this area. Maybe they will be excited, maybe they won’t.

The great thing is that even if not interested in your work, you now have content for yourself. Worst case scenario = you just built a personal portfolio.

References and recommendations
We can safely skip this part. Noone cares what does your former boss, director or HR think about you and how much you scored in the latest quarterly productivity company-wide competition.

Is that all?

For now, yes.
We’ve now established your virtual presence. You can start hunting, messaging, applying. Something we will look into in the next and final episode.

To summarize - your checklist for today:

  • I have cool CV prepared ✔️
  • I have my own little internet corner where I can publish stuff ✔️
  • I made my personal social media accounts private but still searchable ✔️
  • I created my professional social media account on the correct platform where I’m planning to share my journey and build my own audience ✔️
  • I published my recent work ✔️

See you next time.

How to Get a Remote Job: Part 1 (covid-compatible)

We spend up to 35 percent of our productive time at work. Shouldn’t we at least make it so it doesn’t suck? But wait, there’s more - the vast majority of people still commute (more than 70 percent) wasting even more of their time and putting unnecessary pressure on the environment in the process.

Easiest solution to all of this? Go remote!

That is, of course, easier said than done. It’s also worth mentioning that by solving the commute and office related pain points, you will inevitably create new ones linked to your new shiny remote lifestyle - but we will get to that later.

With this mini series, I will guide you through the most common situations people looking for remote job typically find themselves in.

Continue reading “How to Get a Remote Job: Part 1 (covid-compatible)”