5 Productivity Tools for Telecommuters

Research has found that telecommuting can boost the productivity of workers (in a wide range of positions) by 5 to 20 percent. Why? Folks working from home often state that they work harder and smarter, that they work longer hours for the same pay, they can easily avoid wasting time with unnecessary meetings and interruptions, and they can work at personal "peak" times whether that means early morning or late at night.

Personally, I worked as a telecommuter for several months when I first joined the OfficeArrow team. These days, I telecommute once or twice a week when my workload is heavy and I have a lot of writing to do. Today, I'm writing and I'm at home. I firmly agree that telecommuting boosts my productivity, simply because I start early (I'm at my best and brightest between 7 am and 1 pm) and I pretty much work straight with little or no breaks. As a writer, having the ability to attain that kind of pure focus is enormously helpful. And it simply can't happen in the office.

Telecommuting doesn't come without a few challenges though. You have to take some special effort to gather the tools you need to be productive. One of the biggest issues is communication. A teleworker can often feel isolated and for good reason. When you're not in the office, you miss out on a lot. And that can have a serious impact on your productivity.

It goes without saying that telecommuting involves having a full home office set-up available to you, including a computer and any applications you use regularly, as well as email and Internet access. However, in order to stay productive and "in the know" when telecommuting, below are 5 essential tools you should add to the list:

1. RollCall "On Demand" Teleconferencing Service

Ok, so you're not in the office. But meetings still have to take place. Teleconferencing is an easy and effective way to do this. You can connect multiple people with crystal clear sound. The best part about RollCall's service is that you don't have to reserve a time in order to use it. When you have a spur of the moment meeting, it's no problem. You get a dedicated call in number, participant code and moderator code. It works 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Send that information out to all parties and you can meet with absolutely no planning whatsoever.

2. Hands Free Headset or Speaker Phone

Why chain yourself to the phone during a teleconference? Boost your productivity and free up those hands! If you're like me, making notes during a meeting is essential. But with one hand, I'm stuck doing it on paper, which means I have to go back later and transcribe it to the computer. Huge waste of time. The nice part about working from home is that you won't bother those around you with a speaker phone. So, if you're not a fan of headset hair, invest in a speaker phone instead.

3. Instant Messaging

For quick little chats, IM is the perfect tool. I consider it the "virtual hallway." You know how, at the office, you can grab someone in the hall to ask a quick question? IM allows you to do the same thing. It's the easiest way to have a quick conversation - much better than either phone or email. I recommend Trillian, which is an all-in-one service that allows you to communicate with people who use different services such as AOL, Yahoo, and MSN. Other services only let you communicate with those who are on the same one.

4. Wireless Internet and Printer

While I'm not a big one for working from the couch, it's still handy to have the ability to move around while staying connected. No one likes to be chained to a desk all day. In fact, when I was working from my home in California, in the afternoons I often took my laptop out to the backyard and worked from there. Instead of taking a "non-working" break to sit in the sun, I continued my work, soaked up the rays, and still felt rejuvenated. If your work requires a great deal of printing, be sure to set up a printer on the wireless network as well. It keeps you from having to stop what you're doing and get plugged in every time you need to print, which would be a huge waste of time.

5. An Online Document Repository

This is an excellent alternative to emailing documents back and forth with your colleagues. It allows you to upload documents and share them with others securely and remotely. Many will save various drafts as well, so if you upload a PowerPoint presentation and your boss wants to make some changes, the first draft and the second draft will both be stored. Some systems will also allow the parties to make notes for each other, facilitating an easy dialogue. So it's really an amazing collaboration tool that definitely beats going back and forth in email. Zoho, Basecamp and GoogleDocs are all excellent options for you.

Telecommuting can be an excellent alternative to the traditional 9 to 5. With these tools, you'll really boost your productivity. If you're considering asking your boss for permission to give it whirl, check out our article on the topic.