Rosen Todorov - Remote Work Ambassador

Meet Rosen Todorov. 

We’re happy to introduce you to one of the most passionate Remote Work Ambassadors in our community. 

Rosen Todorov

Rosen Todorov is a Product Manager and Scrum Master in one of the fastest growing fin-tech startups in Bulgaria. Every day he contributes to revolutionizing the way we handle our personal finances.  

Let’s see what he shares about his lifestyle as a remote worker and his best advice for working from home. 

1. Describe your working day in 3 words?

R: Dynamic, challenging, fulfilling. 

2. What do you love the most about remote work?

 R: I love that I can concentrate when I have to be really focused on a specific task. I also get to work from a workstation that I find comfortable and built personally for myself.

3. How do you unplug from work?

R: I love photography and traveling. The latter is a bit hard to follow these days, so shooting landscapes and cityscapes is my thing 🙂

4. Would you recommend a friend to Remote IT World and why?

R: I'd absolutely recommend Remote IT World. The reason is pretty simple - of all agencies I was in contact with during my last job hunt, Remote IT World was the only one that actually spoke with me openly, discussing my options and comparing offers and conditions. This shows a high level of professionalism and is something I was looking for back then and will continue to seek forward.

5. Any advice for remote workers?

 R: Don't work outside office hours. No, seriously. Don't.

The community is growing daily and You can be part of it too. Join now and don't ever miss a 100% remote career opportunity.

Ready for more?

Read: WFH Alternatives 

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“We don't live to work, we work to live!” - Meet Nikolay Vuchkov, Remote Work Ambassador

Meet Nikolay Vuchkov

We're happy to announce one of the most passionate Remote Work Ambassadors in our community. 

From developers for developers. 

Nikolay Vuchkov, Niki is a Frontend Developer, from  Bulgaria. He works remotely at a startup company. They build an unicorn product disrupting the esports gaming with AI.  His motto is less stress the better, so that's why he decided to leave us his job search.

Let's see what Niki  says about remote work.

“Remote work gives me the freedom to work from anywhere I want: desk, couch, coffeeshops, beaches, even on a couple occasions at my car 🙂 I highly dislike office atmospheres and in time of global pandemic remote work is a must for me.”

We believe that Remote Work Is A Lifestyle, as everything has its advantages and disadvantages. We asked Nikolay a simple question: How’s your day going?

This is how he described it: Inspired, excited and chilled. 

One of the hardest challenges for people who work remotely is to unplug, so, Nikolay recommends going for long walks, as that also helps him solve more complex programming issues.

“We don't live to work, we work to live!”

“Free yourself from the grasp of corporate, boring, 9 to 5, cubicle jobs and live your dreams. 🙂 We don't live to work, we work to live!” - Best advice we recently heard.

Ready for more?

Read: What It Takes To Be “A” Remote Worker 

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The 2021 Independent Remote Contractor: An emerging post-COVID trend!

The 2021 Independent Remote Contractor: An  emerging post-COVID trend!

In 2021, many top remote employers are looking for contractors, but you may be wondering if life and work as a contractor is the right choice for you.  Let’s take a moment to consider what it means to be a contractor as well as the challenges, opportunities and lifestyle benefits of being a contractor.

There are different types of tech contractors

Many articles that you will read about contractors only focus on one type of contractor: the freelancer.  However, some contractors are not freelancers; instead, they work for a staffing agency or follow new, post-Covid trends. So let’s talk about your options here!

  1. The Freelancer
  2. The Contractor paid by a Staffing Agency
  3. The 2021 Independent Remote Contractor (Post-Covid Emerging Trend) 

Life as a Freelancer

This lifestyle has the greatest financial risk yet it also has the most freedom and perhaps skill growth potential.  You are your own boss, and you can seek out exciting job assignments.  Along the way, you can travel and “follow the money” to the highest paying opportunities.  It’s also a chance to network.  Imagine how many talented people you will work with at each new position, and you have the chance to make a great impression and become regarded as an expert in your field by your many new peers.  You also have the opportunity to negotiate your rates as your skills and reputation grow.  You become your own brand, essentially.  You’ll need to market yourself, continually update your resume and portfolio, and aim for mastery.

The challenge?  You’ll always need to keep your eyes open to job opportunities because you never know when the next assignment will be available. You also need to pay for your own healthcare, save for your retirement independently, and remember that you’ll need to pay what you owe in taxes because there’s no company taking care of that for you.

Overall, if you value variety, independence and are willing to take risks for high rewards, being a tech freelancer may be a good lifestyle fit for you!

Life as a Contractor paid by a Staffing Agency

The key difference is that you are an employee of the staffing agency, and they will help match you with positions at companies. The staffing agency will take care of your salary and health insurance; they may offer additional perks and benefits like moving costs and annual sick days.  When your position ends at the company you contract with, your staffing agency can connect you to other positions.  

The downside?  You are limited to the companies that your staffing agency is willing to work with and your staffing agency will be less flexible in what it can pay you (they need to make money too!). Ultimately, you may still need or want to consider working as a freelancer at some point in your career.

The 2021 Independent Remote Contractor (Post-Covid Emerging Trend)

In 2021, a new kind of an Independent Remote Contractor is emerging. You accept engagements which combine the best of the two worlds above. When it makes sense, you freelance. When it makes sense, you work with agencies. Above all, you focus on networking and partnerships to build stability and security. You look for remote-first companies and build connections there.

You understand that companies are investing in your learning curve. With your focus on learning and connections, you are calm because you don’t need to constantly be on the lookout for new job offers. You look for positions that offer vacation days and holidays, so you can spend time with family and friends.  A new kind of company is hiring for these professionals: the remote-first company.  They have no office. Their team is distributed across tens of countries and at least two continents. The remote-first company is also one of the highest performing. You will be in the middle of the action in a growing tech market.

The pandemic transformed the future of work and it’s the new normal. The need for technology, innovations and advancement is ever-growing. Smart cities, self-driving cars, space missions. Name it and they need tech talent. 

From an administrative point of view, the most common setup is to register yourself as a company or a software development agency in your city and country of residence. Contact a local accountant and book a consultation. They can advise you on the best setup that fits your needs.  

What’s the Best Part of Contract Work?

Personal growth! You are working with growing companies who need your skills and expertise.  You’ll have new opportunities to encounter exciting, cutting-edge technology and innovative services.  Each new assignment has a learning curve, of course, but your skillset will grow as you learn.  Ultimately, you will build your reputation as an expert in your field as you meet other talented industry professionals along the way.  We learn through new experiences, and you, as a contractor, will have plenty of new experiences.  

Another possible benefit?  Many contractors are converted to employees.  That consultant position may eventually become a full-time job offer.  You have the freedom then to accept or continue on your path as a contractor.   

TL;DR

There are different types of contractors: (1) freelancer and (2) those who work for staffing agencies, and (3) the 2021 independent remote tech contractor.

Contractor Lifestyle Benefits

Contractor Lifestyle Challenges

Additional Lifestyle Considerations

Ready to see what remote contractor opportunities are available?

Come browse our job postings!  New listings are posted weekly, and you can always subscribe to new remote job alerts.

For individual career and independent contractor consultation, get in touch with me on LinkedIn or pick a  Professional Remote Career Consultant from our team Kolyo Slavov, Jelena Rakic, Aleksa Boyadzhieva.

Yours Remotely,

Yanny,
Founder at Remote IT World

Remote Work Is a Lifestyle

Remote Work Is A Lifestyle 

Avoid burnout by mastering the freedom of remote work

One of the hardest challenges for people who work remotely is to unplug. This is what we see in the 2021 year report The State of Remote by @buffer. This challenge continues to be one of the top 3 struggles for four years in a row. 

Having worked as a remote worker for over a decade, I can 100% relate to it, agree and confirm it is there and it exists. The inability to unplug has caused me serious burnouts. It took months to recover. But now I understand it’s actually possible to get it right. The concept of "being a remote worker" as a lifestyle choice is radically different from what we are usually familiar with. Remote work is not just a job, it’s so much more than that. It’s a lifestyle and in the following article you will understand why that is, how to shift your mindset and enjoy every working day as the best day of your life. 

Unlearn bad habits

We often make the mistake at the beginning of our remote work journey to mimic the habits, schedules and routines that we inherited from the traditional office jobs. By traditional, I mean really copy the 9 to 5 already known option. Well, honestly, you could choose to do that. Yet it would provide you with access to only a limited portion of the meaningful and valuable benefits of working remotely. 

Harness your peak productivity hours

I’m a firm believer that, as remote workers, we must have already mastered the skill of time management. Efficiency is crucial. However, let me also start the conversation by taking an unpopular perspective, one which will actually grant and leverage the maximum flexibility available to you. Have you noticed how your energy flows up and down during the day? We human beings function differently. There is a theory that makes the distinction between two types of people - the early birds and night owls. It’s scientifically proven that for each of these types, the brain reaches productivity level peaks at highly individual time frames during a normal day. 

Being aware of when these time windows are for you allows you to fully own the freedom to design the perfect day just the way you want it to be. To have things done, in less time, with higher satisfaction and reward. The quality of life you can fully experience by embracing remote working as a lifestyle is not easy to describe in words. You need to experience it yourself. 

Build a sustainable lifestyle

The combination between excellent time management with the proper energy management flows helps you to achieve results with ease. It creates a space where you are able to focus on 20/80 rule activities and prioritize on what needs your immediate attention. 

I invite you to think about it for a moment. Think about what the possibility of having flexible working time can bring to your life? Not to shock you, but it’s literally everything you may dare to want. Just choose it and do it sustainably. Sustainability is a key word here, because in nature, we don't live in a vacuum. Any unhealthy behavior has its impact, although sometimes we prefer not to admit it. 

What if you could choose what time to wake up? 

What if you could architect your most energizing morning routine? 

What if you could have full control over how your day goes? 

It’s a huge responsibility and takes practice to learn to commit to getting done with so much freedom available. Distractions conveniently bombard us from anywhere like notifications, emails, messengers etc. (Psst: a fun trick here that works is to just mute all possible notifications and even put your phone on do not disturb mode 😉 As an employee, you most probably are expected to be online for around 8 hours per day. But let’s be honest with ourselves that we can get the actual tasks done in even less than 6 hours. And there are many books on this topic. The six-hour work day is a contrast to the classic agenda; however it is a dream come true when you embrace remote work as a lifestyle. The deep work hours techniques are perfectly suitable to  focus and concentrate on creatively delivering your top best results free from disruption. How cool is that. 

A great book on my reading list is Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time by Brian Tracy. It essentially tells us that we all have one hard thing to do each day (which feels to us like eating a frog). Get it done first and free yourself from that distraction.

It’s empowering to know when your energy levels peaks are and dedicate them to work and projects. Even the toughest "eat that frog first" kind of assignment starts to seem easier to complete. 

Leave your chair behind! Life is waiting

A must-have healthy habit (and to some extent a necessity to be able to unplug) is to incorporate any form of physical activity into your day! Workouts, gym, brisk walking, swimming, hiring, riding a bicycle, yoga practices, you name it and stick to it. It can be a mixture of any of the above and more. This is essential because one of the pitfalls of remote workers is actually the fact that our bodies stay static during a huge chunk of the day. On a desk and a chair. Indeed, there are plenty of options for ergonomic chairs promising better and longer lasting comfort. Investing in one is a thing you shall not compromise with. But there is more to that. The truth is our body and brain needs oxygen, aka fresh air. Cardiovascular diseases, oncology conditions, peripheral nervous system disorders, hormonal and spine problems are just a few of the most common risks for our health that we are exposed to when we lack active physical activities and regular exercise. The actual problem is that once any of it occurs, it’s irreversible. So, it’s obvious that there must be room in your day for your health and the first to come to your mind is to replace the commute time with exercise time. It’s just that simple. 

Shifting your mind from “How to fit life into a 9 to 5 job” to “a life where work finds its place naturally in your life” is a powerful and rewarding perspective to consider. 

Set hard boundaries

Last but not least, to be able to unplug and enjoy sustainably the life of your dreams by enjoying the flexibility that this lifestyle is about setting your own boundaries. You can always go far and beyond in reaching your highest performance without being overwhelmed and exhausted. Know your own limits and do whatever sparks joy. It may be travelling, spending time with your loved ones or your hobby. Do what’s meaningful and invigorating for you. 

Remember, we wake up every morning to live a life we dream about, we don't wake up only to work. So if you like this uncommon perspective of remote work as a lifestyle, share it with your friends. They may be struggling to unplug, experience loneliness or burnouts and this may be exactly what they need to hear now. 

Yours remotely, 

Yanny,

Founder and Remote Work Ambassador

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Remote work is all around us!

You might be already working remote & you might have not realized it yet. 

Remote work doesn't mean work from home. 
Remote work is all around us!

Operating virtually stands for a set-up where execution is possible via the internet.

Typically implementing tools such as Jira, Trello, communicating to your team via email, Slack, Discord, conducting meetings via Zoom, Google Meet, Skype etc. You already do that, right 🙂 

Apart from the fully distributed teams where everyone can work from anywhere. There are few more successful examples of remote work: Co-located teams, Distributed teams & Hybrid Teams. Let's talk for a moment for each of them: 

- Co-located teams - 

One team is based in an office in Sofia and another in an office in London. The two teams work perfectly well together although they do reside in different countries. To communicate to each other and to align on their tasks, they implement good processes and write down documentation! They have crystal clear expectations of what the outcome of their work should look like. 

- Distributed teams - 

Let's say your company HQ is in the USA, your Sales team is all over the world, your integrators and consultants travel across Europe, EMEA, APAC, some people are in the Berlin office. These team members spread all over the world use the mechanics of remote work to run business and perform their jobs. 

- Hybrid teams - 

The "Core Crew' or as they might think of themselves is in the office. in that team composition, there is also a number of individuals each in a different location. The ones outside of the office are the remote workers. However to be able to work together, the ones in the office adjust their workflow and process to include effectively those outside of it. Basically they all work in a remote fashion. 

Remember, Even if there is 1 person outside of the office, you all already work remotely! 

PS: Lately, i've been thinking, what's stopping you to give your employees the option to work fully remotely? What other myths and stereotypes about remote reside in your head? Drop us a line we're curious to hear from you and assist you on your way to scaling your tech business go global, go remote. 

Yours remotely, 

Yanny 

The Future of Work - the Remote Organization

The Future of Work — the Remote Organization

Corporate enterprises are challenged to follow good practices that lead to success while encouraging flexibility and innovation. Whether your company has decades of experience or is a new start-up, it's time to consider the advantages of the work culture of the future: the Remote Organization.

What are the advantages of a Remote Organization?

#1 - Attracting top talent, of course! And keeping that talent engaged...

Before any business can begin, first comes talented people. Of course, skills can be acquired, culture can be nurtured. But motivation and uniquely talented workers are crucial for success.

The problem? Top qualified professionals are hard to attract.
Tech specialists have endless available career opportunities. On average, a developer receives 3 messages every day, inviting them to apply for vacant positions.

The solution? Talk to a Remote Work Ambassador and GO REMOTE!
We call ourselves Remote Work Ambassadors. We are committed to promoting, fostering and supporting IT and Blockchain societies. We want them to flourish in the era of decentralized professional engagement.

#2 - Remote Organizations really have it all.

Although the popularity of fully distributed companies is relatively small, in the remote ecosystem we have it all.

You name it, we got it! We've got the know-how, infrastructure, global reach and operations, team management best practices, culture and values. Goods or services-oriented, employing small teams to large, these global citizen companies are enriched and flourish.

#3 - Ditch the commute! Embrace productivity and freedom instead.

Imagine your day starts like one of those TV ads. There you are, enjoying the sunrise and a fantastic view with a cup of coffee(or tea). You're not rushing like crazy to get to work. You're there already. Your colleagues are unique individuals living around the world. You know that your freedom comes with trust and responsibilities. By setting up your own quiet workstation, you reach deeper concentration levels and thus can be more creative, productive and able to contribute.

#4 - Put employee health and wellbeing into a rewarding job.

What CEO would not want more results in less time and not at the cost of their employees' health and wellbeing!

We, as remote workers, care for our families! We realize the kids grow fast, so spending invaluable time together while having a rewarding job is our ultimate dream.

Ready to explore the possibilities further? Check out this curated list of remote work resources!


Are you in?

Join The Remote IT World community and discover what is in it for you.

Reach out! I look forward to getting to know you on a human and personal level.

Passionately yours,


Yanny
Founder at Remote IT World