One Simple Hack For Making Remote Work Great: Trust

Remote work is on everyone’s minds right now. If you are fortunate enough to still have a job right now chances are you are doing it remotely. And you’ve probably learned that you can do your job pretty well from home - just as well as you did in the office if not better. And why is that? It’s certainly not because of the added stress of a pandemic. Could it be because your management team actually trusts you to get it done?

We all thrive when we feel trusted.

In fact, remote work has been shown to increase productivity by 15% and it also boosts overall morale within a company. That’s because remote workers feel trusted and that trust is empowering. Employees who work at organizations that value trust report 106% more energy at work and 76% more engagement in tasks. When adults are treated like adults and left to their own devices, more often than not they will derive their greatest satisfaction from setting and achieving goals.

Those people who feel trusted at work are also at significantly lower risk of burning out on the job and have 74% lower stress levels and 29% higher life satisfaction. Most people will tell you that their best days at work are the days where they make progress toward their goals. People are typically inherently self-motivated, so trusting them to do their jobs no matter where they are working goes a long way toward keeping a company going.

It’s possible that remote work is here to stay, too. Adoption was slow because people were unsure how remote work would actually work, but now that the transition has been made and people have proved their abilities, it’s unlikely that companies will need to continue to provide vast and expensive office spaces in which employees will work. Working from home allows for a better work/life balance, and it costs companies less. It’s a win-win situation.

Remote work is here to stay. Learn more about the future of remote work and the psychology of trust from the infographic below.