5 Ways to Discover Remote Co-workers’ Personalities in 2023

 

Remote Work comes with a flurry of advantages. Among the top are the flexibility to work from anywhere, have a work-life balance, save time and money on commutation, higher productivity among workers, to name a few. Along with that, however, comes one significant drawback of not being able to physically interact with your coworkers. However, using the same technology that has made remote work possible, in the first place, you can easily solve this issue. 

Our research shows that among many different ways of discovering your remote co-workers’ personalities, the following are the top ones: 

1. Give them a Call: Be it audio or video call options, utilize either to their full potential. This is a starting point of getting to know your remote co-workers’ personalities the best. In the absence of physical interactions, getting to view the person, you are communicating with, and observing their facial expressions, body language, tone of conversing helps a lot. 
   
   Utilize online chat platforms that your office uses, like MS Teams, etc., to the fullest. These messaging platforms come with interactive features which can provide you with a peek into your remote co-workers’ communication patterns. This also helps set a consistent tone of voice.
      
2. Participate in Online Social Activities: Working remotely can get alienating, and several global surveys have reiterated that fact. But those same studies have also provided us with real-life solutions for this issue. The fact is that you cannot catch up with a remote co-worker for a game or karaoke night after work.  However, you can do most of these activities online today, thanks to latest technologies that bring entertainment to your laptop screens. Bonding activities have shown to reveal personality traits like no other. Using online gaming experiences, or online karaoke jam sessions, for instance, would help you to gain valuable insight into your remote co-worker’s personality. 
3. Engage in ‘Small Talk’: The good old fashioned “giving a call” to your coworker might not seem too viable at first, especially when you have not even met them once. However, this is a ritual that you have to try to actively foster and develop among your co-workers and immediate teammates.  This goes a long way in getting to know their conversation styles beyond the remote workspace. Not only that, but it also helps set tones of communication that you would like them to follow to connect with you. Hence, while discovering your remote coworkers’ personalities, you also set boundaries. 
4. Get Creative with Team-Building Activities: Going beyond team dynamics to engage in inter-departmental activities helps assimilate into the office culture. And we do not just mean hopping on to cross-functional projects that involve many departments working together.  That opportunity will inevitably present itself, which would already help reveal a certain aspect of your remote co-worker’s personality. You can participate in fun activities, like starting a virtual office magazine or newsletter. Doing this, instead, would help you recognize personality traits of your remote co-workers sooner and more easily. 
5. Maintain a Conversation Decorum: Usually, remote workplaces have very decent yet strict codes of conduct. And that is understandable, in fact, helpful and sustainable since the main mode of operation in these organizations are virtual. Communication is Key, indeed, in remote workplaces. 

 

Hence, it is important to put that extra effort to proofread written communication and think before spoken ones. Adhering to office imposed codes of conduct is absolutely important, but so is being mindful of one’s tone of voice through all modes and media of communication.

According to a 2022 survey of 2118 people from 16 countries, 97% of employees would like to work remotely for the rest of their careers. In this changing global scenario, it is best we updated ourselves to accommodate changing needs.