Remote work story of Peter Geisheker.
Hi, Can you please introduce yourself?
I live in Wisconsin USA, and I work remotely as the Global Director of Digital Marketing for SightCall.com. My speciality is building high-volume lead generation programs for B2B SaaS companies. My hobby is composing electronic music and I am currently working on completing my fourth CD.
How did you start with a remote work journey?
When I was a college student at the University of Wisconsin -- Green Bay in the late 1990s, the Internet and world-wide-web were at their infancy and becoming popular. I was hired as a student employee consultant to help build departmental web pages and teach professors how to use the Internet as a teaching tool and how to bring the Internet into the classroom. I was also hired to perform SEO for the University's website. Much of the work I performed in this role was done from home.
When I graduated and got my first job as an area Internet Marketing Specialist for EDP Contract Services/TAC1 corporation, I was allowed a hybrid work schedule working at the office a few days a week and from home a few days a week. My next job was the Director of Marketing for a start-up employment portal for the call center industry. In that role I worked 100% from home. Every position since then has either been fully remote or a combination of office and remote.
What do you think are the main benefits of working remotely?
For me it is having a very quiet working environment set up how I want it so I can focus. I have a horrible time focusing when there is noise and movement around me, such as phones ringing, employees walking around and talking, employees bringing pets to work, being interrupted for short chats, etc. Working from home allows me to work in a quiet environment that is ideally suited for me to be my most creative and productive.
Do you think there are disadvantages or that you’re missing something by working remotely?
The only thing I find that works better in person is group brainstorming. Trying to collaborate over Zoom or chat does not seem to work as well as collaborating in-person.
From what cities or countries have you worked since you have become remote? What are your favourite countries or cities to work from?
I have worked in many different cities in the USA, and for a few months I worked from Salvador Brazil. I have found that I do not have a favorite location to work. For me, it is more about having the ideal office setup with computers and monitors set up how I want them, lighting set up how I like it (I prefer very low soft lighting -- almost dark), having the temperature how I want it (I prefer it to be cool - around 68 degrees F) and having it be very quiet. This allows me to focus and "get in the zone" for being creative and getting projects done at the best of my ability.
From what type of places do you prefer to work? Home, co-working spaces, coffee shops, or others?
Home as there are no distractions and my office environment is set up exactly how I want it.
What places would you like to travel to while working remotely?
Europe -- France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Scandinavia, the UK.
What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them? Share your remote productivity, communication, management, etc. tips based on your experience!
Getting my employers to trust that I was actually working when I was working from home and that I could be equally productive, if not even more productive, when working from home.
What tools do you use to improve productivity and manage work efficiently?
Project management software, from things as simple as a to-do list in gmail to project management SaaS like Monday.com, Asana, etc. I am also a huge fan of Google Docs and Google Drive because they are so simple to use and to share for review and collaboration. Slack is fantastic too as it is much faster to text a person in Slack than to send an email and wait for a response.
How do you manage your business and taxes as a remote working professional?
I have an S Corporation. So, although I am a full-time employee with benefits and taxes taken out of my pay, I use my S Corporation for deducting business expenses such as Internet access, mobile phone, my computer equipment, educational materials, online courses, etc.
What advice would you give to people looking to work remotely?
Treat it like a full-time job where you go to the office each day but that office just happens to be in your home.
Do you work on any side projects?
I used to but now I do not as I want to focus all of my energy and creativity helping my full-time employer. It can be difficult to focus and do your highest quality work when juggling side projects alongside your full-time job.
Would you like to share any interesting stories while you worked remotely? Please share if you can.
Once your employer trusts you and knows that you will perform high quality work from home, you can work from anywhere. So, if you live in a northern climate and want to escape the cold and snow for a few months during winter, there is nothing stopping you from being a "snow bird" and staying at an airbnb in a warm southern climate during the cold months. It also allows you to go on work vacations where you go to a vacation destination and work during your company's business hours and then enjoy your vacation location at night and on the weekends.
Peter's LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/geisheker/
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