How Working from Home Benefits Your Career & Levels Up Your Life
Working Remotely
You know the obvious WFH perks. Now take a deep dive into the unexpected ways working from home benefits your career & levels up your life.
If someone asked how working from home benefits your life, you’d probably mention perks like skipping the dreaded commute, saving money, and scoring a flexible schedule.
But spoiler alert: remote jobs offer so much more for your career and overall well-being than those familiar conveniences.
So we’re highlighting some of our favorite benefits of remote work today, diving deeper than your standard, surface-level wins.
These hidden gems make it clear that the future of work is remote, not because it’s how most people want to work, but because it overcomes the biggest limitations of traditional office settings to help you thrive.
5 Ways Working from Home Benefits & Elevates Your Life
Make sure these unexpected feel-good benefits of working for a remote company are on your radar when job hunting:
1. It Makes DEIB Real, Not Just a Goal To Strive For
Though companies may be committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), remote organizations actually put those strategies into practice. Remote work opens doors for people who typically face challenges in traditional office settings, dismantling barriers to create more inclusive work environments.
According to studies, remote workplaces:
Increase diversity. Over 70% of HR leaders say remote work has helped their organization hire and retain more employees from diverse backgrounds.[*]
When companies aren’t limited by location, they can onboard remote workers from different cities, states, and countries who bring unique perspectives and experiences to the table. Hearing more voices leads to better collaboration, higher innovation, and stronger company culture.
Empower parents and caregivers to succeed. Rather than being forced to step out of the workforce, flexible schedules and workspaces allow caregivers to balance their responsibilities while contributing meaningfully to their team.
Become safe spacesfor underrepresented and marginalized communities. Research shows that 61% of employees have experienced discrimination at work. On the upside, 66% of marginalized groups believe remote work protects them from discrimination in the workplace.[*]
McKinsey researchers discovered that when women work remotely, they experience fewer microaggressions and higher levels of psychological safety. The decrease in microaggressions is especially pronounced for women of color, LGBTQ+ women, and women with disabilities — groups who typically face more demeaning and othering behavior.[*]
Level the playing field and foster more opportunities for people with disabilities. According to researchers, “Disabilities may not be readily apparent in day-to-day interactions and can include a wide range of conditions, such as physical disabilities, mental illness, neurodivergence, developmental disorders, and chronic health conditions.”[*] These often interfere with daily life and make it difficult for workers to participate fully in rigid office settings.
However, employees in McKinsey surveys say it’s easier to manage mobility issues, chronic pain, and mental health conditions when one has more control over their work environment.[*]
In GitLab’s Remote Work Report, 83% of people with a disability or chronic illness surveyed enjoyed working in remote positions.[*] Buffer’s State of Remote Work Report echoed these findings, with 44% of respondents identifying with a chronic illness or disability reporting that remote work provides them with a range of opportunities for professional growth and career progression.[*]
Women with disabilities also say they’re more respected and supported in remote work environments. They feel less likely to experience microaggressions, such as hearing negative comments about their appearance or having colleagues openly question their qualifications. And they admit to feeling more comfortable talking openly with remote colleagues about their challenges.[*]
Overall, more than 75% of remote workers feel they can be authentic at work.[*] This psychological safety, combined with a familiar, comfortable work environment, helps people perform at their highest level.
2. Remote Work Helps Unlock Your Full Potential
Studies show that autonomy and control over one’s work environment are key contributors to engagement, performance, and job satisfaction. Remote work lets you tap into your full potential by allowing you to:
Work where you’re most inspired. Whether it’s a busy coffee shop or a quiet home office that sparks your best ideas, you can thrive in an environment best suited for your needs and work style.
Produce when you’re most productive. Night owls and morning larks alike can create a personal WFH schedule to work around peak productivity hours. Rather than fighting your natural circadian rhythms, you can harness them to increase focus and improve your work quality.
Limit distractions and increase flow. Chatty colleagues and impromptu birthday cake breaks hamper the quiet, focused time you need to get your creative juices flowing. Buffer survey takers said certain things are just easier to get done in a remote setting, like focused work (70%) and avoiding distractions (50%).[*]
Buffer also discovered that 37% of remote companies implement no-meeting days, and 60% of remote employees say they block time on their schedules for uninterrupted, deep focus work, so teams can get in the zone.[*]
Feel more comfortable contributing. Do you get anxious, overwhelmed, or shy when forced into public speaking? You’re not alone. But asynchronous communication makes speaking up, sharing ideas, and brainstorming with remote coworkers so much easier.
You can collaborate in real-time apps, chat via Slack, attend virtual meetings with your camera on or off, leave feedback via project management comments, and more.
- Empowered to do their best work (78%)
- Greater engagement with their work (58%)
- More productive (91%)
- More creative and innovative (55%)
- More energized (48%)
- Successful in their job (77%)
Crushing your remote work life? You’ll be primed to climb the career ladder.
3. Working Remotely Is a Catalyst for Career Advancement
Working remotely is good for career building because it empowers employees to be independent, take initiative and ownership of their work, and spearhead their professional development.
Around 40% of respondents in Buffer’s survey say career growth is easier with remote work. When asked why, 75% said it’s because employees are measured on output and impact rather than their late nights at the office or how well they schmooze with higher-ups.[*]
Working remotely breeds a culture of meritocracy, where your skills and performance take center stage. Increased communication and documentation in virtual workspaces create more visibility, transparency, and accountability.
Individuals are judged based on their clear contributions to projects, tangible results and deliverables, and their ownership of the work. This minimizes unconscious biases often plaguing traditional workplaces, so evaluations and promotions are based on fairness.
Remote work also paves the way for upskilling opportunities. More than half of remote workers (51%) say their company promotes remote career growth opportunities.[*]
Plus, nearly 80% of remote workers believe they’re constantly learning and growing in their roles.[*] Many swap their commute time for professional development, enrolling in online classes, racking up certifications, and partaking in company-sponsored learning initiatives.
Building your career remotely makes you a more valuable asset to your organization and a stronger candidate in the remote job market.
4. Remote Work Facilitates More Supportive Managers & Leaders
Remote managers and team leaders are outpacing their on-premise counterparts by:
- Developing enhanced communication skills. Effective communication is vital in remote settings, nudging leaders to hone their clarity, conciseness, and active listening skills to foster better collaboration.
- Managing by results rather than micromanaging. Remote managers know how to set clear goals, empower their teams, and evaluate performance based on outcomes. Workers rise to the occasion as a result.
- Focusing on individual strengths. Shifting from a one-size-fits-all approach, remote leaders take a more personalized style to understand and leverage each employee’s unique strengths and preferences.
Good manager characteristics are essential in the remote work landscape. As Owl Labs highlighted in their State of Remote Work Report, 85% of remote employees said a supportive manager is the most important factor in their work life — just behind compensation (86%).[*]
That same report revealed that in 2023, more organizations prioritized training and advancing remote leaders to build productive work environments, hold more effective and inclusive meetings, and better manage remote teams.
- 80% say leadership provides them agency and autonomy while working remotely, helping them perform at their best
- 70% of remote employees feel a high level of trust in their managers
- 82% of workers praise their leadership for understanding how to manage remote teams
👉 Check out these 5 Key Findings from the We Work Remotely 2024 Remote Leader Playbook next!
5. Working Remotely Boosts Fulfillment
Researchers say fulfillment is a long-lasting internal sense of wholeness in which we find value in recognizing our impact on the world around us.[*] Pursuing fulfillment is essential for our mental health and helps us discover a deeper meaning and purpose.
When we polled remote workers, we learned that having a flexible schedule (51.8%), being able to prioritize what’s important (34.5%), and spending time with loved ones (30.9%) ranked high on the list of what people love most about working remotely. Their top priority at work? Maintaining work-life balance.
The work-life balance remote work provides allows you to volunteer for causes you believe in, enjoy hobbies, improve your health and mental well-being, and integrate all the other aspects that contribute to a fulfilling life.
- The ability to work remotely increases happiness scores by 20%
- 84% of people feel happier working remotely
- 59% of full-time office workers reported higher stress levels in 2023, compared to just 36% of remote workers
Like our careers, fulfillment is a continuous journey of uncovering and pursuing what we care about most: to feel like our actions matter, engage with others, find greater trust in ourselves, and lead an enriching life. To many, it’s the most meaningful work-from-home benefit of all.
Remote Work Benefits: Overcome Limitations, Thrive Your Way To The Top 🙌
WFH benefits aren’t just about working in your pajamas or saving gas money (and the environment!). It’s a paradigm shift in how we approach work.
Working remotely can help you tap into your highest potential, achieve career growth and personal fulfillment, and realize actual inclusivity and belonging — all while ditching the limitations of the traditional office environment.
It’s time to rewrite the rules of work! Create your free WWR Job Seeker account now to curate your remote job search for greatness! 🪄
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