August 31st, 2010 
Maria Helm 
With mobile technology and online tools becoming available to anyone inexpensively or sometimes even free, more and more workers are thinking of cutting out commute time and work from home. The challenge is how does one make a case for virtual work? First, ask yourself whether the nature of your job does not require you to be present in the office. In other words, if you can start and finish your job or project without eyeball-to-eyeball contact with co-workers or customers, then you are a candidate for virtual work.
Second, are you sure you’re cut out for virtual work? Are you convinced that you have the self-discipline to work from home under minimal supervision? And perhaps more importantly, does your boss perceive you as the kind of self-starter who can perform independently? Are you a proven performer? Well organized? A good time manager? If you can effectively communicate your value to your employer, you’ll be better able to sell your boss on the idea of letting you do virtual work.
Once you are comfortable that virtual work or telecommuting is right for you, and you are fully informed, use the following guidelines and strategies to craft an effective proposal:
* Ask not what telecommuting can do for you; explain what telecommuting can do for your employer. Never frame your proposal in terms of how telecommuting will meet your needs. Don’t mention your need for better work-life balance, more time to spend with your kids, or any other personal need. State only that telecommuting will make you more productive and efficient, be a better use of the time you previously spent on the road, make your boss’s life easier — whatever benefits you come up with that focus on the employer’s needs — not yours.
Posted in 
Tags: 
