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Tag: tips

Top 10 Must-Haves for Remote Workers

This guest post was written by Flocksy writer Rorye Hatcher. You can check out her personal blog here and find her Flocksy portfolio here.

Sitting here typing comfortably in my home office, I wonder how I survived college in one piece. I was somehow able to complete my bachelor’s degree (Go Hoosiers!) perched on a $10 superstore desk chair, hunched over an overtaxed laptop, and chugging more Rockstars than my heart could take today. 

But those days are long gone, and now the creature comforts of my remote work as a copywriter are a little more demanding. Or a lot more demanding, considering the bare minimum would have me curled into a ball of aches and pains after half a workweek. 

Are you considering making the switch to remote work? Is your employer more accommodating of diverse needs and people who just want to work with their pets in the wake of the pandemic and the Great Resignation? Let me share my knowledge of the necessities for a comfortable, productive home office, as well as a few “luxuries” that make working from home feel extra fabulous.

Table of Contents

Desk

Technically, you can work on a coffee table, a card table, or your kitchen island, but having a desk of your own has some distinct advantages. First, if you get an actual desk, it should be roughly at a comfortable height for long hours without hurting your back, neck, or shoulders. If you are particularly short, like me, you may need a couple of things like a seat cushion or footrest to get everything right. 

I found this L-shaped desk on overstock.com and put it together with some help from my husband. It was definitely one of the most challenging flat-pack furniture experiences of my life (and also oddly affirming that a decade into our marriage, we can still peaceably put furniture together). Still, it’s also really nice looking and sturdy now that it’s complete. It’s great to have cabinets and drawers at my desk for printer paper, salsa packets, and lip balm; you know, the important stuff. 

While this desk was a bit of an investment piece for me, you can definitely find more economical options. If you can transport furniture, I encourage you to check out your local thrift stores, like the Habitat for Humanity Restore. They often have furniture and appliances in excellent condition for extremely affordable prices.

Since I built my desk, I’ve made the space feel like mine with candles, office supplies from family members and previous jobs, and tchotchkes like nice rocks and pictures my kids have drawn. If you feel more productive with an austere desk than a cluttered one, you can keep it minimalist. That’s one of the joys of working from home – no one will nag you to decorate or whine if you have too many pictures at your desk.

I also have a workspace pad and a wrist rest to keep my mouse and keyboard from sliding all over the place. The wrist rest also helps keep my hand in the correct position to prevent aches, pain, and repetitive motion injuries. 

Desk Chair

I paid the best price for my desk chair – free. A few houses down, my neighbor put a desk chair on the curb, and I snatched it up as fast as possible. It was extremely well-timed because I was just starting to put my home office together. Granted, I have had to add a few things, namely a seat cushion because the mesh seat was too low and too firm for me. 

If you’re springing for a desk chair, you will want to look for one that is adjustable in as many ways as possible, not just seat height. You’ll want a chair with lumbar support, adjustable arms, adjustable seat height and depth, and more, or you’ll have to add cushions like me. 

You should prioritize the following qualities while shopping for a home office chair:

Wheels

A five-wheel base is the best for providing a trustworthy foundation for moving about during your work day. 

Adjustable Seat Depth

According to experts, the correct way to sit in a chair is with your back against the backrest and your knees bent with two to four inches of space between the back of the chair and your thighs. An adjustable seat depth is a key feature of a back-friendly chair.

Adjustable Seat Height

Some office chairs provide you the option of shifting the seat and the back up or down to achieve that exact sweet spot for the all-important lumbar support. It’s another feature the appropriate chair will have to help you modify it according to your requirements.

Adjustable Height 

This may seem like a no-brainer, but being at the proper height for your legs will boost your comfort. Nobody likes it when their legs hang over the seat’s edge like a preschooler’s.

The seat’s height is also crucial for avoiding discomfort in the neck. If your chair is too high, you might be gazing down at your computer screen and conclude the day with a shoulder and neck ache.

Adjustable Lumbar Support

This function allows you to modify the chair’s lower back to accommodate your lower back better. It’s a crucial step in finding the perfect fit for your body and requirements in your home office chair.

Built-in Lumbar Support

You may get upper back support in basic office chairs, but your lower back will be left out in the cold. Because sitting for long periods might cause pain, you should look for a chair with a cushion or mesh that will support you. Or if you have a free chair like me, you can jam a throw pillow back there and hope for the best.

Armrests That Can Be Modified

Having armrests on a chair for use in the home office may seem unnecessary. However, correctly placed armrests may keep your arms at a comfortable typing height, reducing the risk of repetitive stress injuries like tendonitis and carpal tunnel.

Armrests are useless if they are too close to your elbows or poke you whenever you shift position. If you want to spend money on a chair with armrests, look for one with adjustable armrests. The armrests may be angled, pivoted, and adjusted in height to suit the user’s comfort.

Modifiable Tension for Tilting

The tilt tension on a desk chair allows the user to modify the effort required to recline in the seat. 

Adaptable Headrest

Headrests aren’t required in office chairs, but if you want one, make sure it is adjustable so it doesn’t poke or press your head into an awkward position.

The one thing that bugs me about this chair is that the arms aren’t adjustable, so my poor elbows don’t get any support. But, as I said, it was a free chair, so I soldier on. 

Laptop & Stand

What kind of laptop or computer you need depends greatly on what kind of work you’re doing. I deal mainly with Word, Excel, Google docs, and in-browser applications, so I just needed something that could connect to the internet and do the bare minimum. If you’re a graphic designer or something requiring more heavy-duty software, you might be looking at a heftier price tag for your computer. If you google “best laptop for remote work,” you’ll find a wealth of articles from people more knowledgeable than me on the specs you may need. 

When I started job searching and doing remote copywriting, I used my husband’s laptop, which was fine. But he likes to connect it to our smart TV and watch YouTube videos, and I wanted him to have his own computer, anyway. Once I got a regular paycheck, I got this laptop, which has been just fine once I disabled the “only allowed to have Microsoft apps” setting. (C’mon, Microsoft. Nobody wants to use your browser.) The only issue was that typing on the keyboard and looking down at the screen made my neck and shoulders ache after a long workday. So I bought a basic keyboard and a laptop stand, which helped a lot. Eventually, I’m hoping to buy a more travel-friendly stand if I ever want to work at a cafe or while I’m on vacation, but the linked stand works just fine for being at home and leaving it here.

I also established a stretching routine at the beginning and at intervals throughout my day. While I was more comfortable, I was still dealing with a lot of discomforts, particularly shoulder pain, which led me to purchase the next item.

Ergonomic keyboard

There are a lot of fancy keyboards that purport to be ergonomic, but I did my googlin’ and found that split keyboards are thought to be best for accommodating a typist’s hands and arms and preventing the kind of nagging shoulder pain I was dealing with. I was a little hesitant for a few reasons. One, I’d never really seen anyone using one in an office setting before. My only point of reference was Donna Meagle in Parks and Recreation saying, “this spaceship keyboard is driving me crazy!” 

My second point of hesitance was more budget-based. Unfortunately, the price point rises quickly once you start getting into specialty keyboards. I found a relatively inexpensive Microsoft keyboard that was one piece with an ample wrist rest and an ergonomic split in the middle of the keyboard. 

It took me about two days to get used to it, and it also made me realize that I learned how to type incorrectly because, at first, I kept going to hit the ‘h’ key with my left index finger and hitting no man’s land instead. However, once I got used to the split in the middle of the keyboard, I found it pretty simple to adapt to. 

Fortunately, my budget spaceship keyboard has nipped the shoulder pain in the bud. I’m thankful because I still can’t quite justify dropping $200 on a keyboard, no matter how cool it looks. 

Desk Lamp

I confess I didn’t have a light on my desk until recently. My parents got me a “HappyLight” desk lamp for Christmas that doubles as a task lighting and therapy lamp. It’s nice because you can pick from three different warmths of light and several different brightnesses. I use it every day, but it is extra nice to have on those dreary winter days when there’s no sun in sight. I had a therapy light previously, but it got misplaced or thrown away when we moved back to the Hoosier state. 

My dad said his light has been helping his winter blues (also known as Seasonal Affective Disorder.) It’s sweet that he thought to get one for me as well. I think it does help! It definitely helps prevent eye strain throughout the day. 

Headphones

Headphones are a must-have, especially if you have a spouse who works a different shift than you or kids who might be doing e-learning days. Your spouse can “saw logs” figuratively, or your neighbor can literally saw logs while you listen to music, white noise, or podcasts. 

Regular earbuds tend to hurt my ears, so I lean toward the big “DJ-style” over-the-ear headphones. I had a pair of Skullcandy Hesh headphones for several years and enjoyed the quality. I now have a basic pair of Sony headphones that more than suffice. 

What kind of headphones you need and how much you should spend depends on a few things. Do you want cordless headphones? Bluetooth-capable headphones will cost more than a traditional corded pair. If you want sound-canceling headphones or a prestige brand like Beats by Dre, that will cost you, too. 

One more thing to consider when purchasing headphones: if you’re an iPhone devotee like I begrudgingly am, you likely have one of the more recent models that don’t come with a headphone jack. You can either get Bluetooth-capable headphones, or they make a lightning-to-headphone jack converter. 

Organizer/Planner/Calendar

If you are the kind of person lucky enough not to have undiagnosed ADHD, well, good for you. You can remember your appointments and where you put your phone. On the other hand, I need to set at least two alarms in the morning and start reminders for appointments and events two days in advance. If it’s not in front of my face, it doesn’t exist. I had one of those oversized desk calendars when I worked in an office. It helped sometimes. I also used a lot of calendar and Outlook tools to remind me of things. 

These days, I am trying a mix of a few things. I use Google calendar, synced with my phone, to remind me of the most urgent and pressing things like doctor’s appointments or school holidays. I bought the Erin Condren LifePlanner, mainly because it’s pretty, but also because it has a big two-day spread of each month, plus hourly day-by-day tracking for when I need it. It also lays flat and isn’t spiral bound, which I appreciate as a leftie. I can endure those spiral notebook marks on my wrist, but avoiding them is nice, too. 

If you want more organizational help, especially for remote work, Erin Condren has you covered. 

Milk Frother

This one’s a little silly. Sue me. A former coworker of mine mentioned having one, and at the time, I privately scoffed, thinking it was unbearably bougie. Yet here I am today, to eat crow and admit I love my milk frother. 

It’s one of the indulgences I allowed myself with the goal of not spending money regularly at any of our local coffee shops. I make my coffee hot and iced, and having a cute little milk frother adds a layer of joy to the process. Mine is purple. 

Desk Accessories

Another silly one that makes things more fun and personal is decorating your home office with whatever makes you feel organized, empowered, and centered. I have vintage glass bird figurines, including the little lovebirds that were once atop my wedding cake, candles, crystals, and some fake succulents. 

Depending on your needs and preferences, you could consider having fidget toys for focus, organizers, a whimsical mug, or a heating pad. I keep a weighted heating pad around when I just want that extra cozy touch. 

Air Fryer

I can hear you now. “Just how is an AIR FRYER a must-have for remote work?!”

Let me ‘splain. 

My air fryer was a Christmas gift. Since receiving it, I quickly figured out that it makes BOMB lunch food. Some of my favorites: Sweet potato fries that are crispy on the outside and soft as an angel’s butt on the inside. Crescent rolls with lunch meat and cheese tucked inside for a melty sandwich situation. Homemade crunch wraps. Pork chops. ANYTHING frozen is better in the air fryer. Broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, brussels sprouts? Forget about it. SO GOOD. 

Pizza on a bagel! Reheated pizza! The possibilities are pretty much endless and take less time than the regular oven. 

Having an air fryer rocks for so many reasons. It is healthier than pan or deep frying because it uses less oil. It makes things soft on the inside and crispy on the outside. And when you know you can make something quick and yummy in your kitchen, you’re a lot less likely to give in to the call of GrubHub. 

Did I miss anything? Leave a comment and let me know what’s making your remote work experience awesome.

Why You Need Copywriting

One thing that we haven’t got around to talking about on here is copywriting. I thought that this post might be a good time to talk about the benefits that good writing can have, and why your company needs to be hiring copywriters.

There is a multitude of reasons why your business needs copywriting, and copywriting might just be the missing piece to your website or blog that will allow it to go from great to fantastic.

In this post I’m going to give you 3 reasons why your business should have a copywriter, and what you gain from it. When I’m done I’m sure that I’ll have you convinced that what you need is for your website to be successful is the services of an experienced and talented writer.

Three reasons why you need copywriting:

One: Imagine how much nicer your website could look. I know your website already looks amazing. However, having a copywriter write copy for your blog or website, could really make it look fantastic. Not only are you having someone give an outside approach to your content, but they are also experts. They know how to craft content that draws readers in and engages them. You supply the content and they create something that is not only well-written but is interesting as well.

Two: Time is always the thing people are running out of, especially if you own a business. So, copywriting can make it so you, as a business owner, have much more time to do other and just as important things and still get amazing copy for your website and blogs. All in all, time is money, and hiring a good copywriter can save you time and money.

Three: Copywriting doesn’t just fall under creative content, but also companies such as Flocksy offer such things as editing copy and rewriting, that way if all you have is the rough draft of your own work, the writers can edit and proofread it for you.

Copywriting is useful for many things and if you haven’t given it a try, then you should, because not only is it good for your business, it’s also useful. Here at Flocksy we offer copywriting and so do many other places such as Freelance. Copywriting is just the thing to make your website stand out in not only design-wise but also in writing. Copywriting can help you really tell people about your business, and communicate your goals and mission. It’s a tool that allows you to engage your audience in a way that you might not otherwise be able to.

Four Ways To Build Your Social Media Following

If you own a business than there is a good chance you’re advertising and an even better chance that you’re using social media as a way to promote your company and brand. However, sometimes it can be hard to build a good strong following for your business on social media, so how do you go about doing that? Well, there are quite a few ways that you can go about building your business’s social media following. Down below are four ways that you can apply, just to start with.

Four ways you can build your social media following:

1. Host a giveaway: Hosting a giveaway on one of your social media platforms can be a great way to build your social media following. Give away something exciting and that everyone would be interested in winning. That way it will generate lots of interest, and if following your account is one of the requirements you will gain a lot of new followers.

INTERACT:

2. Follow accounts back: When people start to follow you, you can follow them back. Sometimes people tend to like it if they feel like the interest is not one-sided. Every business has had times when people start to follow them for a giveaway or something and then a few days later unfollow them, am I right?

This way they will feel like you saw that they followed you, and then you followed them back. This can be a good way of helping you to create a relationship and help to decrease your follower loss.

3. Reply to people’s comments: No one likes to comment on a photo or video and not get a reply. If you’re not replying to comments, then people aren’t going to want to discuss and interact on your posts. So, in order to make sure that people are interacting with your posts you have to be replying and socializing as well. Not doing so could cause people to stop following you and stop interacting on them.

4. Post good content: Posting good, engaging content can really make the difference between someone following you or not. So make sure you’re posting photos and video that will make people want to follow you. Some things to avoid are controversial (let’s leave the politics at home), negative (no one likes to hear about the lousy weather), or questionable (let’s not air dirty laundry) content.

Building up your social media following is something that every business should be doing. Because gaining followers overnight is not an instant thing. It takes time and focus.

One last note. Yes, you can BUY followers; however, we highly recommend against it. Buying followers is not the same as gaining real-life people that are interested in your company, product, service or brand. They are not invested in you and are not going to increase your traffic or sales.

So, please, don’t even look into buying followers. Stick to the real thing.

5 Tips For Creating A Good Blog

Starting a blog for your business can be hard, not only trying to come up with good content and making your website a page that people actually want to read and return to, but also the fact that you are adding an extra job on top of your busy workload, since your blog is probably not at the top of your list of stuff to do for your business, am I right?

However, a blog can be a very good thing for your business. So your blog should be a top priority for your business. Some questions that might be running through your head right now are “How do I find the time?”, or, How do I create engaging content?”, and probably lots more.

Well, today I’m giving you a short list of some very basic stuff to keep in mind when starting a business blog, creating content, and engaging readers.

5 Things To Keep In Mind When Starting A Business Blog:

One: This first one is pretty simple and easy to follow because it should already be something that you follow when blogging. That is to come up with a number of blog posts you want to post a week and then try to have days that you post on. For example, say you want to post two posts a week and you want to post them on a Monday and a Friday. Then pick those days and make sure to post every Monday and every Friday. It will help let your readers know that there will be a blog post on those days when they come to check out your blog. Consistency is key!

Two: Have a variety of content on your blog. Don’t get stuck on one subject and nothing else. People like to see a selection of content so that they can read about different subjects without having to leave your blog. Remember, don’t be overwhelming though. You don’t want your blog scattered and random. Choose no more than about six topics to write on.

Three: If you run out of ideas for blog posts then it’s okay. Do not worry, because all you have to do is write about something that is happening in the business. There is so much that you can write about when it comes to a post about your business, and it’s always a good back-up topic.

Four: Not posting is not an option. If you can’t find the time to write a post than hire someone to do it for you. It doesn’t matter who it is, as long as they write well, and understand your business and blog topics. Posting less than once a week is not an option.

Five: Last, yet not least, remember to keep your content simple. When we start blogging, we can tend to get a little carried away and write a 1,000+ word blog post on a subject that might be boring. Believe me when I say that a short 350-word blog post on a simple, easy to read topic can go just as far, if not further. All to say that when starting, a 350-500 word blog post is probably going to be the way to go. No one is interested in a long-winded article. Short, sweet and consistent is the key to good blogging.

Blogs are great for businesses, and every company should have one! Don’t worry if you’re not sure exactly how to create one or what to write, because I have you covered with these super easy tips to keep in mind when starting a blog for your business. Follow them, and I’m sure that your blog will turn out amazing!

Tips and Tricks For Bringing In Business

Your business is going good, you are generating a lot of new leads, sales are up, and overall you are happy with how it’s working out. But sometimes we have to face the fact that business isn’t going to be booming forever. Every business hits a plateau, and you may even have weeks, months, and maybe even years when your business goes downhill.

Here are some ways to bring more business in if you start to find things lagging, or foresee that in the future they might start to.

One: The most important thing to remember when thinking of ways to bring more business in, is to make sure you are interacting with your current customers and potential customers. If you aren’t already doing this then start doing it right now.

Two: If you don’t have social media accounts for your business, then you need to get some, that just goes without saying. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, get them all and starting posting, liking, and commenting. Social media is going to be your best friend in the advertising department (here’s my post on the benefits of social media if you would like to read it )

Three: Advertise well. It’s important that you are advertising in more ways than one. Use Google ads, Facebook ads, and social media to advertise. Anything that you can use to advertise your business, do it, whether it is big or small. You are never going to bring in business if you don’t advertise on a daily basis.

Four: Almost no one can pass up a good deal! So do a 10% off sale or a 30% flash sale and talk about it everywhere. This can help you bring in some more business and possibly make it so people will come back to you when they want to buy that same product or service again, instead of going to someone else.

These are good things to keep in mind whether you need more business or want to bring in more. All four of these things are something that every business should be doing even if they don’t feel that their business is slow or diminishing.

Three Tips On How To Use SEO

 

 

So I was thinking since we have talked about what SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a few posts ago, that we could talk about ways to get results from SEO! This is the post for you if you are looking for ways to get your SEO ranking up there and want to learn a bit more of ways to use SEO for your business.

Here are few tips on how to improve your SEO rankings down below.

Keywords:  I’m going to talk about this one first because it’s an important one. Find on Google keywords that people search. Then take them and put them in your writing.  But remember that you don’t want to use them too much, so only put them in about four times for every post.

Other content than text: It’s good to have more than just text on your website or in your blog posts. So go ahead and add some videos and photos. This can help people to engage more and be more tempted to keep scrolling.

Social media: So let me start by saying that if you don’t have a social media account for your business then you need to go and make one right now. Anyway, social media is great for improving your SEO ranking when people share links to your website on it. 

 

SEO is great for your business and these are a few ways that you can use it. I hope that they were helpful to you in  learning a little bit of how to use SEO and make it work for your business

How To Increase Your Instagram Following

 

Are you having trouble gaining Instagram followers? Do you want more followers, but just don’t know how to get them? Here are five of the best ways to increase your Instagram following:

1. Create a cohesive, attractive account. Instagram is all about the images, therefore you want your page to look nice. Sure, everyone wants to post “real” stuff, but that’s what Facebook is for, am I right? So if you are looking to increase your following and move past having less than 200, then save that stuff for other social accounts and only post attractive pictures.

2. Don’t try to gain followers through the oh so popular loops. This is a huge turn off and keeps real, authentic followers at bay. You want to create a genuine following, not just people trying to have a high follower count.

3. Be original. Don’t copy and repost all the time. Try to only post your own photos, and especially steer clear of memes. People like to know that what you see is what you get. So make sure you post only your own content, don’t take photos off the internet and post them just so you have a post for the day.

4. Interact is the name of the game. Comment, like, follow, and interact with all of your followers and with new accounts. If someone starts following you it doesn’t mean that you necessarily have to start following them back, but be sure to go and leave a comment and like some of their photos.

5. Finally, remember, a successful account is not measured by how many followers that you have but rather by the interaction that you have from the followers that you DO have. With Instagram’s new algorithm, the more people like and comment on your posts the more they will see them in their feed.

Four tips to make writing your blog easier

 

Sometimes writing a blog post can be difficult. Finding the right words to transfer your thoughts to a post isn’t always the easiest and you might find yourself sitting looking at a screen for far too long without any results. And I’m pretty sure that none of us really has the time to waste on blank pages, and empty screens.

Here are four tips to make writing a blog post quick and easy!

Have an idea: If you have an idea already in your head, and know that basic format and approach you are going to take BEFORE you sit down at the computer it’ll probably be much easier to start writing. It’s a common issue (like stage fright) to have your brain freeze when you sit down to write if you don’t already have at least an idea of what you want to write about before sitting down.

Keep it simple: Keep it simple and to the point. People like to see what they came to see and than leave. Nobody wants to sit reading something for forever-no matter how good the writing and content is. Use 300 to 500 words per a post, and no more or else it gets too long.

Bullet point: Pull out all the bullet points. It makes certain sections stand out, among your writing, highlights (without using the highlights). However, make sure when using bullet points you keep your paragraphs short. About five to six sentences. Say what you want without boring your readers.

Know what you want: When writing if you know what message you want to get across first, then getting it down in writing will be ten times easier. Think about what you want your post to be about. The newest iPhone, how to cook a steak, the latest  news, a book review, etc, have an idea and then get busy typing!

By using these tips you’ll be able to write fast and have awesome blog posts that people can read in five minutes or less.