Want to know how remote working can become a 24/7 playground for your thinking and imagination? How to create your own creative bubble? How to work on your other passion projects while also working full-time as a remote employee?
After last week’s interview with Sondre Rasch I was really curious about Namira, the Creative Design Lead at SafetyWing. If you remember he said that whenever she goes off with a brief, what comes back is always better than he could have thought of. And that she pours her heart into everything, works to her own standards, and how that’s a great example of self management, an essential skill for a remote worker.
I got to thinking, what makes Namira tick? So it was obvious she needed to be the next guest on the show. Because it’s one thing having the high-level ideals of the founder that drive the remote culture and philosophy, but we also have to remember that the magic happens when it collides with the idiosyncratic personalities, habits and rituals of the team.
I really love how Namira describes remote work as enabling a 24-7 playground for her thinking & imagination; how she creates a bubble within which her creativity can flourish daily; and the perspective that enables her to work on other projects while also being a full time permanent employee.
Key highlights from this episode include:
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It’s worth learning how to collaborate in a new way.
Actually, I do miss that real life collaboration. But again, with other benefits that we get from working remotely it’s, it’s almost, it’s worth it to learn to collaborate in a new way…. I actually love doing this new way of you know, collaborating, because it’s just like it’s learning something new. It’s always fun, and I always kind of get a lot from it.
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There are ways to socialise with your colleagues online.
Yeah, I really miss those, you know, Friday happy hour with your colleagues. Yeah, social hour, or, yeah, open house or you know more where you can invite your loved ones or friends and everyone just not work, which is quite fun. But you know, it’s not, it’s not the end of the world. It’s not like we can’t find it a time online to do that. I actually did a couple of happy hour online with my colleagues and that was, you know, close.
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You get to design your own non-schedule schedule.
I don’t have like a schedule that I always do. I don’t have like a set schedule for lunch or anything. That’s what I like about it too. Because I’m like, Oh, I’m feeling like I’m stuck. And I think I need to take a break. And that could be you know, 3pm 1pm or noon…. The time where I can work I work, the time where I cannot and I need a break, I take it. And that’s really I think one of the sources of happiness for me lately, just because I feel like no time has been wasted and I am the most productive. And with with this code, this non schedule, schedule.
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Know how to transition from work to ‘life’ in the same space.
When you’re done working and you want to switch off and you know, you basically want to, quote, leave the office, where do you go and like, how do you really switch the surrounding because you can’t really you’re just in the same room you’re just done working basically. So and that really affects you know, our mood right our psychology and mental health so I just, it’s really important to, you know, start kind of, for me it’s too like practicing your brain to, you know, when you’re done kind of shake it off a little bit now I like to do a little stretch or workout after I work and it’s it is physically I’m shaking it off but mentally also is I’m like, leaving the space and and you know, letting that behind me and this is me entering my home.
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Remote work makes it easier to have passion projects on the side.
I love having Omnimono on the side because it’s something that I go to, and I can be kind of who you know I can evolve my identity to because it’s important to do other stuff for me it’s so important to do other stuff other than your work…. I have freedom with SafetyWing and I love that so much and but you know, that is me as their designer, but I also need me outside of that as an artist and this is something that I can do with Omnimono where I can kind of have more, you know, personal and self expression through that channel.
Find out amore about Namira & her work at NamiraAddulgani.com and Omnimono NYC.
*I love the Health Insurance offering from SafetyWing so much that I’ve partnered with them. This means that should you invest in their global health coverage I’ll receive an affiliate commission. This keeps me and my podcast going, so thank you so much in advance 😉
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