Out of Office by Gihan Perera

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www.OutOfOfficeBook.com

Out of Office

Using the Internet for Greater Freedom in Your Work Life Gihan Perera and Chris Pudney

Table of Contents Introduction Who Is This Book For? Why Should You Believe Us? Benefits Drawbacks Head In The Cloud Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Coming Up On-line Resource Centre

1 3 5 7 10 13 16 17

The Semi-Commuter

At Your Convenience

Manage Time Create Space Embrace Technology Protect Yourself More Resources

24 29 35 43 52

Cooperate With Them

Principles E-Mail Short Messages Phone / Skype On-line Meetings More Resources

Keep Out The World

The E-Worker

55 59 72 73 74 82

For Your Comfort Manage Time Create Space Embrace Technology Protect Yourself More Resources

Collaborate With Them

87 89 93 97 97 98

Principles Tools More Resources

100 104 116

Let In The World

117

Safety In Numbers Think For Yourself Join The Club Join The Conversation Use Social Media More Resources

The Digital Nomad Finally Free

118 125 128 132 138 146

147 149

Manage Time Create Space Embrace Technology Protect Yourself More Resources

151 154 159 164 169

Accommodate Them

170

Use The Cloud Get A Little Help Virtual Office

171 172 183

More Resources

Embrace The World Ready: Believing It’s Possible Set: Preparing For The Trip Go! More Resources

Action Plan

185

186 188 191 198 202

203

What Do You Really Want? The Hedonist’s Guide To Goal Setting Your Life, Your Rules

203 206 212

Appendix: Common Cloud Services

214

Glossary Of Terms

220

About Chris And Gihan

227

Introduction

Introduction In 1868, Milwaukee newspaper editor and printer Christopher Latham Sholes had a problem. He had created a writing machine, which he called a ‘Type-Writer’, for individual operators to print words on paper. His was not the first such device – Henry Mill had obtained a British patent for a similar idea as far back as 1714 – but it was the first to be commercially successful. It was initially marketed as a device for secretaries to transcribe dictation for their bosses, and many women mastered the skill of typing, as it was one of the few respectable jobs available to women – particularly unmarried women – at that time. In fact, it was their success that caused Sholes his problem. His original typewriter keyboard had the keys laid out in alphabetical order, but that caused problems for fast typists because the moving parts of the typewriter kept jamming when adjacent keys were pressed too quickly. Sholes struggled with this problem for five years, experimenting with mechanical improvements to the typewriter and different layouts of the keyboard. In 1873, when he sold the commercial rights for his typewriter to the Remington Company, he had settled on the familiar QWERTY layout we still see today on computer, mobile phone and tablet keyboards. The QWERTY layout was designed with common pairs of letters further apart from each other, to reduce the risk of jamming the typewriter. However, it has some disadvantages – the most notable being that it heavily favours left-handers.

Out of Office

Various alternatives to the QWERTY layout have been proposed, but none have taken hold. Even though Christopher Sholes’s original problem has long been obsolete, his solution has remained, even though there’s no longer a convincing need for it. On the other hand, there’s no convincing reason to change, either – and that, of course, is why it remained the status quo. In the last few years, though, mobile phones and tablet computers have introduced new technology – such as tapping icons on a screen – that is far easier than typing, and we’ve seen that people are happy to adopt it. Although typing remains important – and the QWERTY keyboard layout survives to this day – it’s not the only option available. This book is about something else we believe is changing rapidly due to technology: the office. The Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries created the need for workers to come to offices every day. Until recently, many office workers had no choice except to work in the office, because that’s where they could find files, telephones, the secretarial pool and their colleagues. However, working in an office now might still be convenient and efficient, but it’s often no longer necessary. We have access to files over the Internet, telephones in our pockets, secretarial assistance from outsourced providers, and can meet colleagues remotely. Like the QWERTY keyboard, there are now feasible alternatives and compelling reasons to change. Millions of office-bound workers – employees and business owners alike – have changed their work style so they are not forced to work in an office every day from Monday to Friday. They do this for convenience, comfort and freedom – and they can be just as productive, and their organisation can be just as profitable. This book is to help you become one of those millions.

Introduction

We call this the Out of Office environment. That name comes from the familiar e-mail subject ‚Out of Office‛, which you might have received from somebody warning you they are temporarily not checking e-mail. However, in today’s Internet-connected world, being ‚out of office‛ no longer has to mean you’re unavailable. You might be working from a home office, while propped up in bed, sipping coffee at a local café, sitting at a park bench, or even in an exotic country. This is sometimes called ‘workshifting’, ‘location independence’, or – more whimsically – being a ‘digital nomad’1. Whatever term you prefer, more and more people are choosing this work style – and there’s no reason you can’t be one of them. For those of us who know what it’s like to work full time from an office, this is an attractive scenario. For some younger employees – many Generation Y employees, in particular – it’s a fact of life. Many don’t just seek a better quality of work life; they assume it. They spend time outside work hours cultivating Facebook friends who sometimes turn into business relationships, they check e-mail and messages on their smart phones at all hours of the day, and they might listen to a business podcast at the gym. If they’re doing all this on their own time, they expect their employer to give them flexibility about working from home. This generation is sometimes criticised (unfairly, we think) for their attitude towards work; but we can be grateful to them for pushing employers and managers to consider Out of Office environments for their employees.

Who Is This Book For? There are many books, courses, coaches and other resources to help you discover your passion, find your dream job, start the

The term ‚digital nomad‛ comes from a 1997 book title Digital Nomad, by Tsugio Makimoto & David Manners. 1

Out of Office

perfect business, do what you love and wait for the money to follow, or design a life where only four hours a week feels like work. These are all worthwhile aims, but this book won’t help you with them! Rather, this is a book for people who are happy with their work. We assume you enjoy your job or your business, and you’d like to use the Internet to give you more convenience, comfort and freedom in where and when you work. Take a few minutes now to imagine what your life could be like if you didn’t have to spend every work day at an office. Ask yourself these two questions: 

What unpleasant things could I eliminate from my life?



What pleasant things could I add to my life?

For example, the answer to your first question might include: a long commute in traffic, a tiny cubicle as your workspace, bickering co-workers, people who constantly interrupt you at work, lack of natural light, expensive parking, late nights at the office, out-of-date software, and so on. For the second question, your answers might include: natural light while you work, flexibility in your working hours, more time with family and friends, and so on. This is not just a pipe dream; it’s a reality for millions of people, and it could be your reality as well. You’ll find this book most useful if you’re a knowledge worker, who manipulates bits, electrons and documents rather than bricks, electron microscopes and door frames. It’s equally applicable whether you’re an employee or a business owner, and whether you’re at management level or not. This is a practical book, not a motivational book. We assume you’re already interested in making this shift, and now want to know how to make it happen. If you’re still not sure, take a few

Introduction

minutes to complete the exercise in the Action Plan chapter (page 203). Go ahead – we’ll wait ... We also assume – importantly – that your boss, organisation, spouse, partner and friends aren’t deliberately standing in your way. Although they might not be as enthusiastic as you, we’re assuming they are at least willing to consider the idea seriously.

Why Should You Believe Us? We first met in 1986 – a quarter of a century ago – while studying Computer Science at the University of Western Australia, and have remained friends ever since. Although our professional paths have diverged, both of us have found ourselves working in Out of Office environments, although in very different ways. Gihan runs his own Web design and consulting business, based in his home town of Perth but with most of his clients elsewhere. This gives him flexibility with both working hours and location. Chris works as a contractor, developing software for a multinational company with employees located throughout the world. He works remotely, full-time from his home in Perth. We both use some Internet-based tools to operate our Out of Office environments – for example: 

Skype and mobile phones for telephone calls, conference calls and video conferencing



IM (instant messaging) and SMS for short messages



The eFax service to send and receive faxes by e-mail



On-line meeting software to conduct remote meetings



Webinar software for making presentations



Discussion forums, blogs, Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and Google+ for connecting with other professionals



Google Docs and wikis for collaborating on documents

Out of Office

We’ve written most of this book in a shared voice, but from time to time you’ll see our smiling faces like this when we relate personal anecdotes:

In fact, let’s start by relating our personal Out of Office stories.

Since I started my business in 1997, most of my clients have been outside Perth, so I never needed a fixed office. I did, however, start with a home office, and travelled locally, interstate and internationally to meet with clients. At one point, in 2007, I was travelling across Australia every month – from Perth to Sydney and Melbourne – to conduct workshops and seminars. Although the work was enjoyable, the travel was exhausting. Now I deliver the same material from the comfort of my home office using webinars, discussion forums, Skype and other Internet technology.

In 1999 my wife Sheree and I travelled to the U.K. for an 18-month working holiday. I got a job developing visualisation software for a research and development organisation near Bracknell, west of London.

Introduction

Towards the end of our stay, I told my boss I would soon be returning to Australia and I was keen to take my job with me. Fortunately, my boss thought it worthwhile, and although senior management took a little more convincing, they eventually agreed to it on a trial basis. I work full-time from a home office, and rely on the Internet to connect me with my colleagues and resources. It also provides me with other tools such as discussion forums, blogs and other on-line services. More than a decade later, I’m still working remotely for the same company. In fact, another of my colleagues has followed in my footsteps, moving to Australia from the U.K. whilst keeping his job.

Benefits There are a number of benefits to an Out of Office environment, some obvious and others less so. We’ll list some of them here, not only to convince you but also to help you convince your employer, your family and others involved in the decision.

A more enjoyable work environment Even if you enjoy working in an office – for example, because it gets you out of your house, or because you enjoy the company of your colleagues – you usually don’t have much flexibility in your work environment. You can pin a few photographs to a cubicle wall, and bring in a potted plant, but there might not be much scope beyond those small changes. In an Out of Office environment, on the other hand, you can choose whether to work at home, go to an Internet café, sit on the

Out of Office

beach with your laptop computer, or choose some other environment that suits you.

Save time and reduce expenses When youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re telecommuting, you save the time, stress and expense of real commuting. These can be significant savings, even in the short term. One American study suggested that somebody with a daily one-way 30-kilometre commute who switches to telecommuting saves about 50% of the energy consumption of an average household2. You might also save on other incidental costs, such as dry cleaning suits and uniforms, after-hours day care, parking, car maintenance and eating out. Another survey3 of US telecommuting habits estimated that on average, a half-time telecommuter would save 52 minutes each day by not having to travel to work. This adds up to between two and three weeks of free time each year. The same survey also calculated savings of $US382 on the average annual fuel bill and net annual savings on other items such as food, clothing and parking of between $US1,966 and $US6,808. Working Out of Office is not only good for individuals; it also helps society in general. Our cities are getting more crowded and congested, and the daily commute to central offices will soon become unsustainable. Urban planners need better solutions, and the Out of Office environment can play a big part.

The Energy and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Impact of Telecommuting and eCommerce, TIAX 2007: OutOfOfficeBook.com/to/tiax. 2

Workshifting Benefits: The Bottom-Line, Teleworker Research Network, May 2010: OutOfOfficeBook.com/to/teleworker.

Introduction

More freedom and flexibility You have more freedom and flexibility in your work day, so you don’t have to do the ‚9 to 5‛. You could wake up and spend half an hour checking e-mails, then go to the gym, return for a shower and breakfast, check e-mail again, take the children to school, and then get back to work. It’s possible – but not as easy – to follow that routine when you’re working from an office. In Robert Half Technology’s 2010 Salary Survey of IT workers, almost half said they would consider taking a pay cut in exchange for more flexible working hours4.

Greater productivity If you’ve ever spent a day at home in order to finish a report or focus on some other important task, you know how productive that day can be. Imagine doing the same every day! Even if you don’t achieve those heady heights every day, there’s no doubt your average productivity can be far greater than in an office. One study5, based on a survey of several large organisations that allow their employees to telecommute, estimated a 27% increase in the productivity of telecommuters compared to their officebound colleagues. When you’re away from the office, you generally have fewer interruptions from work colleagues. People respect your time more because they can’t just pop their head around your door at any time. They have to coordinate meetings and interruptions, and that alone forces them to think twice about wasting your time.

IT workers will "pay" to telecommute, CareerOne, December 2010: OutOfOfficeBook.com/to/half. 4

Workshifting Benefits, Op. cit.

Out of Office

Why not? Finally, we ask: why not? Some people will challenge the idea that you can be just as productive working away from an office. We’d rather challenge the status quo. We don’t think most modern knowledge workers need to be restricted by the past, and it’s time more people stood up and challenged it.

Drawbacks Although we’re enthusiastic about the benefits of the Out of Office environment, we acknowledge there are some drawbacks as well. These aren’t insurmountable, but it’s wise to be aware of them – especially as you make the case for changing your work style.

Some higher costs There might be some financial costs associated with the Out of Office environment, although they usually aren’t significant. They include things like upgrading your Internet access plan, buying a smart phone, getting wireless Internet access, paying more for utility bills (because you’re home more often), renovating a room to create a home office, and so on.

More difficult to build a team culture If you’ve spent most of your working life in an office, you might find it difficult to build the same camaraderie and connections when you’re working from home or from an Internet café.

Every year or two, I visit my colleagues in the U.K., and each time I usually meet a few people face to face for the first time. Typically, I’ve already corresponded with them by phone or e-

Introduction

mail, but until meeting them personally, I don’t fully appreciate the more subtle aspects of their personalities. The team culture is not only created by the formal teams in an office; it’s also formed through informal lines of communication. It’s remarkable how much information is shared in the tea room, the lift, the car park and even the washrooms! There’s no real substitute for these informal communication channels in an Out of Office environment, not only because of the physical environment but because people are more careful about what they say and write in electronic communication.

Reduced social interaction Even if your work colleagues are not your friends, you might still enjoy the social interaction of an office. Many Out of Office workers find the isolation to be disconcerting and distracting at first, and some never adapt to it. One of our friends discovered this when she spent four weeks at home recuperating after surgery. Although she was able to work from home, she missed the face-to-face interaction with her colleagues, and even took the occasional trip to work during that time – as much for the interaction as for work reasons.

More potential for miscommunication Your communication styles might not match, especially with people you haven’t met. There’s always a danger of this in any work environment, but it’s worse in an Out of Office environment because you might not even realise there’s a mismatch. You don’t see facial expressions when somebody reads an e-mail message, you don’t see the subtle shift in posture during a conference call, you miss the warning glance from the CEO when you’re presenting a webinar, and so on.

Out of Office

People don’t know the rules Many of us have worked long enough in an office environment to know the unwritten rules and protocols of the workplace. The rules of an Out of Office environment aren’t as clear and obvious, so you have to establish them yourself, and ensure your colleagues agree to them. Without this in place, you’ll be bombarded by distractions, time wasting and inappropriate behaviour – thus losing some of the benefits of the Out of Office environment.

Lower personal productivity Of course, productivity issues don’t only come from outside. In an Out of Office environment, you have to be more disciplined, more focused and more responsible. When you’re working on your own, it’s not always easy to maintain focus and avoid non-work distractions.

Temptation to work long hours That said, the opposite problem is more common for the Out of Office worker: that is, working too hard. It’s easy to fall into this trap, especially when your work is just on the other side of the study door.

Some people will resist the change Finally, regardless of how well you try to smooth the path, some people around you might resist the change. Even if it’s positive and productive for them, they will get in the way, create obstacles, obstinately refuse to accommodate your new environment, or even deliberately sabotage you. You’ll need to use all your interpersonal skills to deal with these people!

Introduction

Head In The Cloud Despite the drawbacks, we believe the Out of Office environment is the way of the future. The main reason for its growing popularity is the growth of the Internet in general, and ‘Cloud Computing’ in particular, which has made the Out of Office environment feasible, even for small organisations. Cloud computing is not a technology; rather, it’s the practice of having software and data on the Internet, rather than on computers. It’s called the Cloud because early computer text books depicted the Internet as a cloud-shaped blob. A modern version would look like this:

Using the Cloud means we’re using the Internet for what we previously had on our computers – files, software and the services to manage them. All of this is now available on-line, and that’s perfect for us to shift to an Out of Office environment, for a number of reasons: 

Access: The biggest benefit is it offers instant and universal access to data. We can have access to our files, software, services and everything else wherever we are – from our office, our home, or an Internet café in a foreign country. We

Out of Office don’t have to carry a laptop computer with us or keep transferring files back and forth using USB thumb drives.



Infrastructure costs: Your organisation doesn’t have to buy, install, license and maintain their own software. It hands over this responsibility to a third party, and simply pays a much lower rental or lease fee (and sometimes no fee at all). Although you might not be the person paying for this, it still helps when making the case for moving Out of Office.



Administration costs: You don’t even have to back up your files (although we’re both paranoid enough that we do it anyway), because the Cloud-based provider does this for you.

I’ve moved many of my personal computing services into the Cloud. I use Gmail for e-mail, contacts and tasks (my ‘To Do’ list), and Gcal for my calendar. I’ve only done this for my personal needs – my work e-mail, contacts, tasks and calendar are maintained separately because the organisation I work for uses Microsoft Exchange for these services. Because these services are Cloud-based I can access them from my desktop computer, portable laptop PC or my smart phone – anywhere I have Internet access. I’ve chosen to use Google’s services because they integrate seamlessly with my Android smart phone. As much as we like and endorse the benefits of the Cloud, we’re realistic enough to acknowledge its drawbacks as well, including: 

Lack of access: As much as we’d like to have instant and universal access to the Internet, this isn’t always true in practice. If you can’t connect to the Internet, you lose access to all your Cloud-based facilities. However, this is becoming less

Introduction

of a problem now, partly because we do have better access to the Internet, and partly because software developers are finding clever ways to manage the connection problem. 

Service reliability: Even if you can connect to the Internet, you’re also relying on being able to connect to your Cloudbased service provider. If that service is unavailable for some reason, you still lose access (temporarily) to your data.



Service changes: Service providers do change their services, change hands or go out of business. Many Cloud-based services are free or cheap, and rely on advertising or premium services to be financially viable. However, advertising revenue streams change, premium users decide not to renew, and the business model might simply not be viable.



Security and privacy: When you rely on the Cloud, you can’t lock your documents in a safe or cupboard, and you can’t just turn off your computer at night to protect your data. That data is also more vulnerable to attacks from hackers, unintentional security leaks from your Cloud-based service and even unwelcome access from government agencies.



Ownership: Similarly, consider the issues of ownership and the legal implications of storing information on Web sites owned by other people. Facebook, for example, has maintained that even if you close your account, your pictures and other information remain on Facebook forever.

Despite the risks and drawbacks, the Cloud offers an unprecedented opportunity for an Out of Office environment. Ultimately, as more services become available in the Cloud, it will become an inevitable move for many office workers6.

At the time of writing, Apple was launching its own Cloud-based service, called iCloud. Despite the confusing similarity in names, iCloud is just one of many examples of a Cloud-based service, and the Cloud is broader than just iCloud. 6

Out of Office

We also urge you to take responsibility for educating yourself. Don’t just leave it to your organisation’s IT department. Although they should have thought through these issues, it’s no guarantee they have, and you will be the person affected if things go wrong. There are a handful of Cloud-based services we use a lot, and we refer to them in different parts of the book. We’ve summarised them in the Appendix (page 214).

What’s Coming Up In this book we’re going to consider three broad Out of Office environments: 

The Semi-Commuter, or part-time telecommuter, who spends some time at work and some at home



The E-Worker, or full-time telecommuter, who works from home full-time



The Digital Nomad, or location-independent worker, who isn’t necessarily confined to a single workplace

Although we treat them as if they are clear and distinct, our classification is somewhat arbitrary. There are many variations on these three scenarios, so don’t think of them as the only possibilities. If you’re currently working full-time from an office, you’ll find the book takes you on a logical path, from Semi-Commuter to EWorker to Digital Nomad. We’ve designed it so each part builds on the next. However, you don’t have to follow this path one step at a time. There’s nothing to say you can’t skip a step or two – for example, to go from a full-time office job to a full-time Digital Nomad. We’re not saying this is easy, but it might be possible. If you do find yourself in this lucky situation, we recommend you read the

Introduction

intervening parts of the book as well, so you get a solid grounding for the intermediate steps. We’re also not suggesting everybody should aspire to be a Digital Nomad. Although it’s an attractive lifestyle – and one Gihan currently enjoys – it’s certainly not necessary in order to have a fulfilling, productive work life. Chris, for example, is very happy as an E-Worker with a single home office, without needing the extra flexibility of being able to work from anywhere. We won’t make any judgement about what’s best for you. But we do encourage you to choose your work style, rather than having it dictated to you. The rest of this book is in three parts, one for each of these three scenarios. Each part has three chapters, giving nine chapters in all (Well, it turns out to be eight, for reasons that will be obvious later).

On-line Resource Centre Although we’ve given you as much help as possible in this book, there are always some things we can’t cover in detail. Besides, one of the challenges of a book about technology is that the technology changes so quickly. To help you get maximum value from this book, we’ve created an on-line resource centre, which is available free to you as a reader. The resource centre includes additional material for each chapter, including audio recordings, webinars, e-books and videos. We also include links to all the Web sites we mention in the book, as well as additional Web sites related to each chapter. There are two ways to get access to this resource centre. The first is to go to OutOfOfficeBook.com and type in the password ‘goodies’ in the Password box you see there.

Out of Office

The other method is by using a QR code, which is a special feature for smart phones and tablet computers. If you have a smart phone with a QR code reader, just scan this code to go directly to the resource centre:

If you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know how to do this, get the NeoReader app for your iPhone or the QuickMark app for your Android phone. Enjoy the book!

The Semi-Commuter

The Semi-Commuter The first Out of Office environment we consider is the SemiCommuter, or part-time telecommuter. You have fixed working hours but two workplaces – typically your office and your home.

This Out of Office environment has these features: 

Your purpose is convenience, because you can schedule other things when working from home.



You’re not isolated from your team, and you need to cooperate with them when they need your help (and vice versa). However, you don’t necessarily have to be as fully available to them on your Out of Office days, because you do spend some

Out of Office time in the office each week. So it’s more a matter of ensuring you are available if needed.



You need to keep out the world, because it’s tempting to be distracted and unproductive on your Out of Office days.

At Your Convenience

At Your Convenience In 1961, Gerry Harvey and Ian Norman opened their first store in Australia, selling electrical goods to the public. This was the first of what became the multi-national chain of Harvey Norman stores throughout Australasia and Asia. Fifty years later, the Harvey Norman group boasts that it’s Australia’s leading retail chain, a claim that’s not without merit, with Interbrand’s ‘Best Retail Brands Report’ in 2011 placing it third in the top five retail brands in the Asia-Pacific region (behind Woolworths and Japan’s Uniqlo, and ahead of David Jones and Myer). Until recently, Gerry Harvey wasn’t a fan of on-line commerce, famously saying in 20087: I’ve got an on-line part of my business, but I definitely would not put more into it. That’d be a recipe for disaster. On-line people do not make any money. It’s a con, a complete con. Three years later, he led a group of retailers in an advertising campaign complaining on-line sales were harming his business. They argued that because Australian consumers don’t pay a 10% goods and services tax (GST) on imported goods below $1,000, offshore retailers had an unfair advantage that was threatening to put local retailers out of business. This coalition of retailers was campaigning for the Australian government to remove the $1,000 tax-free threshold and impose the 10% GST on all imports. The campaign sparked a huge consumer backlash, and within two weeks Gerry Harvey withdrew from it. This was always going to be an unpopular campaign – after all, it’s hard to convince consumers that their government should impose an extra tax to

Why online retailing is a dead-end: Gerry Harvey, Smart Company November 2008: OutOfOfficeBook.com/to/harvey. 7

Out of Office

force them to shop at Harvey Norman – but the truth is that Gerry Harvey and his colleagues missed the point. The real difference from on-line shopping doesn’t come from a 10% price surcharge, which is often eaten up in postage and shipping costs anyway. Although price is certainly an important factor, the real benefit of on-line shopping is convenience. As consumers overcome their fear of on-line shopping, they realise it’s often far more convenient than visiting a physical store. For example, in consumer electronics – one of Harvey Norman’s key product categories – the Internet-savvy shopper looking for something specific can make a far better decision on-line: she can visit the manufacturer’s Web site, she can read product reviews by other customers (not just by salespeople and marketers), she can ask her Facebook friends for their opinion, she can compare a number of on-line retailers, and she has access to a wider range of options – all without leaving the comfort of her home 8. We live in a society where many people seek – and demand – convenience, especially for routine activities like shopping, eating, watching television, travel, reading and connecting with others. However, there’s one routine area of life where convenience still takes a back seat: our work day. Most office workers still work a 9-to-5 day (and even that is stretching to 8-to-6, or worse), which is extremely inconvenient for other parts of their life. This is changing, but slowly (far too slowly for our liking), as the Out of Office environment becomes feasible for more people. However, employers are often reluctant to embrace this for fulltime work, so often the first step is for workers to adopt the Semi-

The backlash from Gerry Harvey’s ill-fated advertising campaign forced him to reconsider his position; and – to his credit – he did a swift aboutface, and announced plans for a significant on-line presence, aiming for $1 billion turnover within a decade. 8

At Your Convenience

Commuter lifestyle, where they get the convenience of an Out of Office environment for at least a few days a week.

Here’s the point Being a Semi-Commuter is convenient because you can schedule personal activities on days you’re working from home. However, this situation also brings with it a number of issues – particularly related to your own discipline in working from home. Some people will refer to this as a time management issue. We prefer the term attention management, because it’s about combining the dual responsibilities of working from home with being available to colleagues and clients. Although you’re working from home, you can’t just switch off the outside world, because then the external work just piles up. Being effective is about managing the flow productively. In this chapter we’re going to look at your personal effectiveness, in four broad areas: 

Time: how you manage your time, focus and attention



Space: how you create a productive work space



Technology: how you enlist technology in managing flow



Security: how to do it all with appropriate security in place

Out of Office

Manage Time Not so long ago, electronic communication was largely dependent on telephones and fax machines. If you didn’t have access to them for some reason – perhaps because you were travelling or sick – everything ground to a halt. Today, with the Internet, the problem is reversed, because you can communicate with anyone twentyfour hours a day, 365 days of the year. This has its advantages, of course, but it also means you could find yourself ‚always on‛, and never able to take a break.

In 2009, when my family and I spent some time visiting relatives on their farm, I found myself without Internet access for a week. While I didn’t suffer from complete withdrawal symptoms, I must admit I felt what we jokingly call BSA – or ‚bandwidth separation anxiety‛. When I returned home, my in-box was full of messages. Fortunately, I wasn’t away for long, so it was easy for me to clear it out; but others do get so anxious about this that they feel the need to be constantly connected to everybody else. In this section we’ll look at ways for you to manage this lifestyle, so you can work when you’re away from the office, but avoid getting too tied up with work your entire life. We’ll suggest three principles to follow: 

Choose a higher signal quality



Choose between one-way and two-way communication



Choose between immediate and deferred communication

Let’s look at each in turn.

At Your Convenience

Signal quality Engineers use the term signal quality to refer to the quality of a telephone line. A line that’s clear – like you’re talking to the person in the same room even if they are on the other side of the world – has a high signal quality. On the other hand, a line with a lot of static, hiss or dropped calls has low signal quality. You can apply the same principle (metaphorically) to all your communication tools. Examine each, and eliminate or filter the low-quality tools that waste your time and don’t consistently deliver value. Here are some things you can do to eliminate low-quality signals in your work day: 

Change the ring tone on your mobile phone for certain numbers so you can identify who is calling.



Let all other calls – or at the very least, unidentified calls (like those from private numbers) – go to voice-mail so you can deal with them later.



Create filters in your e-mail software so certain messages go to a "Read This Later" folder.



Filter out as much spam as you can (most good Internet service providers will do some of this for you).

Keep in mind you might have initiated some of the noise yourself, and it could be very easy for you to stop it. For example, you might be subscribing to e-mail newsletters or blogs you rarely read, podcasts you rarely listen to, Facebook applications that send you irrelevant notifications, or discussion groups that no longer provide value. Because these are under your control, control them! We suggest you apply the 80/20 rule: unless at least 80% of what you receive from these sources is valuable, cancel them.

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One-way and two-way communication Television is a one-way communication tool; a telephone is a twoway communication tool. Both are useful, for different reasons. Examine the various communication tools in your work life, and decide whether you want to use them for one-way or two-way communication. Note the emphasis on what you want. We urge you to make an informed choice about how you’re going to use the tools, rather than leaving it to chance.

I use my mobile phone for all outgoing business calls, but don’t give out the number to clients. Instead, incoming business calls go to a separate number, or to my help desk support team. This allows me to choose when to return calls, rather than being interrupted by anybody at any time. As another example, consider how you use Twitter. Many people – particularly business professionals – avoid Twitter because they think it’s full of inane chatter about what people had for lunch. It can be, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Most people do in fact treat it as a two-way communication tool, where you contribute as much as you read. However, you can choose differently, and make it a one-way tool, where you follow only people who tweet links to useful articles. Or you could make it a one-way tool in the other direction, where you only tweet links to useful articles to your followers. This isn’t using Twitter as most people do, but your goal is to use it effectively for yourself.

Immediate and deferred communication A meeting is for immediate communication, because everybody has to attend at the same time. Other examples include telephone

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calls, conference calls, face-to-face meetings, group presentations and Internet chat rooms. A shopping centre bulletin board, on the other hand, is for deferred communication. Somebody posts a notice there, and people read it later:

Other examples of deferred communication include e-mail, SMS, discussion forums, YouTube videos, blogs and podcasts. Immediate communication is more disruptive but can lead to quicker decisions. Deferred communication is less disruptive and can lead to slower but better decisions. Choose whether to use immediate or deferred communication in various situations. Control your time by choosing carefully, and by encouraging others to do the same. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a place for both, but use them appropriately.

One of my clients asks his clients to send him text messages (deferred communication) rather than calling him (immediate communication). This allows him to respond to simple questions by a text message, and to escalate the communication into a phone call if necessary.

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In many modern office environments, workers expect everybody else to be checking their e-mail regularly. So they use e-mail for sending urgent requests, and get upset if somebody doesn’t read and respond with the same sense of urgency. However, this is a poor use of e-mail. E-mail is a deferred communication tool, so you shouldn’t expect everybody to be checking it constantly. Tackle urgent issues using an immediate communication tool – like a phone call, video conference or online chat room. If you can educate your colleagues to use e-mail only for non-urgent issues, your entire workplace will be far more productive (E-mail is such an important productivity tool that we discuss it in much more detail in the next chapter). The reverse is also true: if you use immediate communication for something that isn’t urgent or immediate, you unnecessarily interrupt other people and gradually create a culture where it’s considered acceptable to do so. Do you really need to phone your colleague to ask that question, or is it good enough to ask it by email first and only follow up with a phone call if you haven’t heard back by the end of the day? We admit it takes time to start thinking this way, because it means putting yourself in the other person’s shoes before initiating every communication. However, it’s worth the initial effort because it soon becomes a habit. Of course, you also need to gently educate your colleagues and others in your network to think the same way. They are probably working together in the office, where interruptions are taken for granted; and they might not think of you working from your home office, trying to be productive by not being interrupted. However, even if you’re their boss, it’s not always easy to lay down the law in this area. We recommend you take a more subtle approach. Start modelling the behaviour yourself first and then

At Your Convenience

gently reward that behaviour in others, and subtly penalise the wrong behaviour. For example, if somebody does send you a request by e-mail, don’t reply immediately (unless it really is urgent). If you reply immediately, the person starts to learn – even subconsciously – that you’re checking your e-mail regularly, and that encourages them to start expecting an instant response.

If I check my work e-mail over the weekend, I almost never reply until Monday (unless it’s urgent). Similarly, if I receive an e-mail that should have been sent to my help desk team, I forward it to them, rather than replying directly myself. On the other hand, if I get a phone call, I answer it immediately if I’m present, or return the call promptly if the caller leaves a message. Again, we’re not trying to dictate rules to you; we are suggesting you create some rules yourself.

Create Space As a Semi-Commuter you’ll probably have a single fixed location, such as a home office or study, from which you work when you’re at home. You might occasionally work from an Internet café or your favourite park, and we’ll cover this in greater detail in the Finally Free chapter (page 149), but in this section we’ll focus on you setting up your primary Out of Office workspace. Setting up and maintaining this workspace is not without expense. Your employer might be prepared to foot some of the bill; speak with your manager. Alternatively, you might be entitled to deduct some of the costs from your tax bill; speak with your accountant.

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Your workspace Location Because you regularly work Out of Office, it makes sense to have a dedicated workspace, rather than, say, setting yourself up with a laptop computer at the dining table. Most modern homes have a study, home office or a spare bedroom that can be pressed into service as a dedicated workspace. Even if yours doesn’t, you ought to be able to furnish a corner of one room with a desk and office chair to dedicate to your workspace. If you really have no corners to spare, the dining table might have to do. Choose a quiet and isolated workspace if possible, to minimise interruptions and reduce distractions. One of the potential benefits of the Out of Office lifestyle is increased productivity. However, if your workspace is noisy or in the middle of a busy household, you won’t realise the productivity gains. Your workspace needs to be comfortable because you’ll be spending a considerable amount of time there. So, an ergonomic desk and office chair are essential. You wouldn’t settle for uncomfortable furniture at the office, so don’t settle for it at home either. You can also personalise your workspace to your heart’s desire – a freedom you might not have at the office beyond a few photos and a potted plant or two.

Internet access Because you’re working from a fixed location, ADSL or cable broadband are usually better than mobile or wireless broadband, because they provide a faster service for a lower fee. Keeping your personal and work-related Internet usage separate can be a difficult proposition. Having separate lines installed to support separate Internet services is probably excessive, so you might need to apportion your expenses instead, estimating how much is for business use.

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Phone For talking to others, you’ll probably use a fixed-line phone or mobile phone. One important consideration is whether you want to log your work calls so your employer can reimburse you or for taxation purposes. Getting a separate work phone is one possibility, but a cheaper option might be to use Skype, which uses your Internet connection for telephone calls. All you need is the Skype software, broadband Internet service and a microphone and speakers9.

Remote access When working Out of Office, you’ll typically want access to the same data, documents and software as you do when working at the office. In an ideal world all of these resources would be available to you anytime, anyplace via the Cloud:

Skype is one example of an Internet telephone service – a technology known as ‚VoIP‛ (Voice over Internet Protocol). It’s by far the most popular, so throughout this book we’ll say ‚Skype‛ as shorthand for ‚Skype or some other VoIP service‛. 9

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However, in practice we have a long way to go before using the Cloud becomes ubiquitous, so we have to consider alternatives when working Out of Office. The next best situation is where you have access from home to your organisation’s intranet (strictly speaking, that makes it an ‘extranet’). In effect, this is similar to having access to the Cloud:

You will need the same software on your two computers, and you need to make sure they are running the same versions of that software. If you make personal use of your home computer, keep your personal files separate from your work files. The cleanest option is to create separate user accounts on your computer for personal and work use, and log out of one and into the other as needed. Remote access to a corporate intranet via the public Internet is often encrypted to prevent third-parties from snooping on your communications. This encryption is provided using a technology referred to as a Virtual Private Network (VPN). It’s worth bearing in mind that when using a VPN, network transfer speeds are often slower due to the additional time taken to encrypt and decrypt data communicated via the VPN.

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However, sometimes you don’t even have access to the intranet, so you do need access to another copy of your data and documents. There are two possible scenarios to consider, depending on whether you use a work laptop computer (or tablet computer, such as an iPad).

Without a work laptop If you have no access to the office intranet and no work laptop computer, you need to physically transport the information you need between your two work sites:

This can most easily be done using a USB thumb drive, which you use to transfer your data files between home and work. Thumb drives are one of the most common sources of computer viruses, so ensure you have anti-virus software that’s regularly updated on both your office and Out of Office computers. An alternative is to copy files to the Cloud using a service such as Dropbox.com. However, some organisations are still wary of such services, so check company policy first before using them. As with a thumb drive, you’ll need to remember to copy your files to and from the Cloud. Files transferred via the Cloud can be infected with viruses, so you’ll still need up-to-date anti-virus software.

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If you’re using your own computer, you’ll need compatible software installed, a firewall for security purposes, and separate accounts for personal and business use.

With a work laptop If you are permitted to take a work laptop with you when you work at home, some of the difficulties mentioned in the previous scenario disappear – especially if it’s the same laptop you use in the office:

You will still have to make sure you copy important files to and from your work intranet, if you don’t have access to the network from home. The work laptop should also be protected by anti-virus software and a firewall; otherwise it might be vulnerable to infection when connected to the Internet while working Out of Office. Conversely, other computers on your Out of Office network might also be vulnerable to infection from viruses on your work laptop. There ought to be no need to create separate work and personal accounts when using a work laptop, if you simply avoid using the work laptop for personal use.

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Embrace Technology We encourage you to embrace technology, rather than to avoid it or fear it. We don’t necessarily mean you should adopt every new piece of technology or use every feature. Rather, we encourage you to use it effectively to improve your productivity. Use what works, and adapt or discard what doesn’t. We’ll be talking about your productivity in many other parts of this book, so this section isn’t our last word on the subject. Rather, we’ll focus here on personal productivity tools that can help you when you’re working part-time from a home office. Our ideas here cover three main areas: time management, searching the Web and processing information more efficiently. Of course, another big productivity issue is e-mail, which we’ll cover in the next chapter, because it involves cooperating with others.

Write it down Write down all your tasks so they don’t stay in your head and clutter up your thinking. Look for ways you can use technology to simplify this process.

I create a simple mind map on my smart phone every week, with my main personal and professional goals for the week. I then use a text document on my PC to keep track of action items for the week. Every morning, I use a ‘To Do’ application on my smart phone to list the top five priorities to be done that day. To some people, that might sound like a lot of work! But in fact it takes no more than half an hour each week, and it gives me a sense of feeling organised and in control.

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Any system that works for you is worth using, as long as it puts your tasks in writing. We strongly recommend you don’t use your e-mail in-box as your ‘To Do’ list, although many people do use it in exactly this way. This is a poor practice for a number of reasons: 

It makes you reactive rather than proactive



It puts the focus on other people’s priorities



It doesn’t allow for things that aren’t done by e-mail

Use some other method to keep track of your action items.

Set aside blocks of time Allocate blocks of time for important tasks you have to do by yourself, in the same way you would set aside time for meetings with others. One technique we like, called the Pomodoro Technique, is to set a timer for 25 minutes when starting a task, and focus on that task alone – without any interruptions – until the timer runs down. The theory is it takes 10-15 minutes to get focussed, and only after that does the real work begin.

Turn off notifications When you do decide to focus on a task for a specific period of time, remove other distractions: turn off e-mail, Skype and instant message notifications; unplug the phone or take it off the hook; and perhaps even disconnect yourself from the Internet if you think that might distract you. If you can’t turn off your smart phone because you refer to apps on it regularly, switch it to flight mode so you won’t be interrupted.

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Use your mobile devices Although you might do most of your work from your home office, if you have another portable device – like a smart phone, an iPad, a Kindle or the like – take advantage of it for doing snippets of work at odd times.

I copy interesting blog posts to my smart phone (using the Read It Later plug-in, which we’ll describe soon), and read them when I have a few minutes to spare – waiting in line for coffee, waiting for people to turn up to a meeting, and so on. This is a productive way of using up those minutes that might otherwise go to waste. We’re not suggesting you spend all your spare time working – that would defeat the purpose of the Out of Office lifestyle! However, you can give yourself the option to use otherwise wasted time, and then choose how to exercise that option.

Use the Firefox browser Use Firefox, rather than Internet Explorer or Safari, as your Web browser. Because Firefox is an open-source browser, it’s managed and updated by an army of volunteer programmers, rather than being controlled by one company. This means that whatever features you’d like, somebody else has probably created them. Firefox keeps improving, and developers can also create independent ‘plug-ins’ to add functionality without having to wait for new versions of Firefox10.

We also like Google Chrome, which is Google’s own Web browser. Although it’s owned by Google, it too is open source, and has a growing fan base of developers who adapt it and create plug-ins for it. 10

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One of Firefox’s most impressive features is its ‚awesome bar‛, which is the line at the top of the browser where you see the current Web page address:

At first glance it doesn’t look particularly special (let alone awesome), but it does more than just display the current Web page address. When you start typing directly into it, Firefox automatically searches your bookmarks and browsing history for matching pages you’ve visited before:

It even learns from your behaviour over time, so it can present better matches in the future.

Use bookmarks Your bookmarks (Internet Explorer calls them ‘Favorites’) are a list of the Web pages you visit frequently. You add Web pages to this list and can return to them quickly by simply choosing them from a drop-down list. Even if you use the Firefox awesome bar for returning to frequently-visited Web sites, keeping a bookmarks list can be useful because you don’t need to type anything to go to a bookmark. Organise your bookmarks in folders for faster access, so you don’t have to wade through the entire list looking for a bookmark (This is similar to organising files on your computer).

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Firefox is even smart enough to turn a folder into a drop-down menu when you put it in the Bookmarks Toolbar. For example, Gihan has a ‘Frequent’ folder with bookmarks to common on-line services, and it is accessible from his bookmarks toolbar:

Use Read It Later One of the Firefox plug-ins we particularly like is the Read It Later plug-in, for bookmarking Web pages for later reading11:

When you visit a Web page or blog post you’d like to read later (so it doesn’t interrupt your work), simply click the Read It Later icon and it’s added to a list of pages. Other similar services are Instapaper.com and Apple’s ‚Reading List‛ feature, which – at the time of writing – they were planning to include in the Safari Web browser. 11

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Of course, you can do the same thing by adding it to your bookmarks, but Read It Later has some useful additional features. The most useful feature is that your Read It Later list is stored in the Cloud (password-protected, if you wish), so you can read it from anywhere. For example, iPhones and Android phones have apps for accessing your Read It Later list. This makes it ideal for saving Web pages for reading later when you’re filling in time waiting for something or somebody. You can also download those articles to your devices for reading even when you don’t have Internet access.

Use the Google Toolbar The Google Toolbar, another free service from Google, makes your Web browsing easier and more efficient:

It gives you easy access to Google’s suite of tools, which itself is a handy time-saving feature. It also makes searching easier, because you can search directly from the toolbar rather than going to the Google Web site.

Open search results in a new window Configure your Google preferences so each search result you click opens in a separate window. Although this is only a small change, it makes it much easier to view the search results: you click a search result, it opens in a new window, and if it’s not what you want, you simply close that window and look at the next result.

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Most modern Web browsers allow multiple tabs rather than multiple windows, and this is even easier to manage, because you see a list of your open tabs along the top of the browser window.

Use auto-completion suggestions When you start typing a query in Google, it guesses what you’re searching for, and offers suggestions. These suggestions can sometimes save you time because you don’t have to type the entire query:

Google now even displays actual search results, not just search queries, as you’re typing. For some searches, it even shows a preview of the Web page when you move your mouse over a search result. All these features can make your searching faster. They might only save you a few seconds each time, but that time adds up. More importantly, they help you find the right result faster, and that saves time because you don’t keep going down blind alleys.

Look for Web feeds Web feeds (also called RSS feeds) give you a way of subscribing to a Web site or blog – think of it like a magazine subscription, except it’s free. When the Web site publishes something new, all subscribers are notified. Unlike an e-mail newsletter, though, the new information doesn’t arrive by e-mail, so it doesn’t clutter up your e-mail in-box.

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You do need special software, called an RSS reader, to read and display the Web feeds (just as you need e-mail software to read email). An example of such software is Google Reader, available from Google at reader.google.com, which allows you to subscribe to Web feeds easily. You specify which feeds you subscribe to, and it automatically shows whateverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new in these feeds:

Although youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll probably use this mostly for blogs, they are available on some other Web sites as well. Look for an orange icon like this, which is the convention used for advertising a Web feed:

Use Google Alerts Use the free Google Alerts service, at alerts.google.com, to notify you of new Web pages in your area of interest:

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In effect, this is like searching Google every day for a particular phrase, except you don’t have to manually keep searching for it. Instead, you simply tell it the phrase, and Google e-mails you the new results every day. You can also choose to receive the results as a Web feed, which you can read using Google Reader, as described earlier.

Choose audio for multi-tasking Audio and video sharing have been popular for quite a few years already, and YouTube has become one of the most popular Web sites on the Internet for video sharing. But audio and video are harder than text to absorb or digest quickly, because you can’t skim the content. However, audio has the advantage of being better for multitasking: you can listen in your car, when walking, at the gym, and in other places. For this reason, if you have the choice between an audio and video version of the same content, choose the audio version unless the visuals are essential. Another efficiency trick with audio files is to speed them up, and you can still understand them because the brain processes information much faster than we can speak. For example, if you listen to podcasts on an iPhone, you can speed up the audio playback. The same applies to some Android music players. Alternatively, you can do this manually using audio editing software. Although this isn’t as convenient, it’s worth the time because you’ll save much more time when listening.

Protect Yourself Now that you’re working away from your office, you might no longer have an IT department looking after your computer security. So it’s up to you to educate and protect yourself.

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This has become even more important now, because it’s so easy for malicious Internet users to attack your computer. They no longer need to be skilled hackers obsessed with spending every waking hour breaking into high-security networks, like banks or military networks. Now, they simply release software that cruises the Internet, automatically detecting and exploiting the weaknesses they find. The techniques you use fall into two categories: technical (exploiting flaws in the technology) and social (exploiting flaws in you). We’ll consider both.

Internet access If you have a wireless network – whether it’s purely wireless or connected through your ADSL router – it’s vital you secure it properly. Don’t rely on the default settings, which might leave your network unsecured. Change your access-point’s administrator password, and secure your wireless connection so people outside your house can’t access it (This also encrypts data transmitted via the network and prevents eavesdropping).

Firewall The next step is to ensure you have a good firewall, which is software that sits between your computer and the outside world, to keep out intruders:

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This is so important that in larger organisations, the firewall might actually be another computer rather than just a piece of software. Either way, all Internet access goes through the firewall, and you have to approve every program that’s allowed to use it. It’s like the guard at the castle gate, who only allows authorised people to pass through. Firewalls are almost fail-safe security mechanisms. We say ‚almost‛ because their real weakness is you. As we said, you have to approve each software program that uses the firewall, which means you must think carefully about granting such approval. When a program asks for access, don’t automatically grant it; think first.

Passwords Research has shown that many people choose simple and obvious passwords that are far too easy for intruders to guess12. If your password is ‘password’, ‘password1’, ‘qwerty’, ‘1234’, ‘1111’, ‘letmein’, any dictionary word, or something equally simple, you might as well not bother with a password at all! It’s like locking the castle gate but leaving the key outside the door. Even if you choose something unique about yourself – such as your middle name, your mother’s maiden name, your birthday or your pet’s name – this sort of information might be easy to find (for example, on a Facebook page or a Google profile). Use strong passwords for all your private and confidential information, and use different passwords for different services. A strong password should contain letters (a mixture of upper-case and lower-case letters), digits and punctuation, and be at least 8 characters long.

See, for example, The Top 500 Worst Passwords of All Time, at OutOfOfficeBook.com/to/passwords. 12

Out of Office A word of caution about using punctuation characters in passwords: I recall having difficulty typing a password when in Italy, because the Italian keyboard didn’t have the particular symbol I needed. So use common punctuation symbols, or search Google for keyboard layouts before travelling, so you know how to type these symbols.

If you find it difficult to remember all your passwords (and most people do, which is why they get lazy and compromise their security by choosing weak passwords), use password wallet software, which stores all your passwords for you and automatically logs you into each Web site. You just need one password to open your password wallet, and it takes care of everything else. For example, the Firefox Web browser, which we recommended earlier, lets you save passwords for Web sites you visit, but also allows you to set a master password, which protects access to all the other passwords.

Operating system updates Ensure your operating system checks for updates automatically, and downloads and installs them as required. This prevents intruders taking advantage of security flaws that give them access in unintended ways (the equivalent of a castle intruder discovering a hidden tunnel into the castle).

Anti-virus software If the intruders can’t get through the castle gate themselves, their next attempt is to sneak in with somebody else. That’s how viruses attack your computer: they usually arrive in e-mail attachments or Web browser downloads. Because you’ve allowed your e-mail program and Web browser to access the Internet, the firewall unwittingly allows the viruses through.

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That’s why you should use anti-virus software as well, and ensure you keep it up-to-date. All good anti-virus software has an option to automatically download and install the latest version, and you should ensure this option is turned on by default. Modern Web browsers and e-mail programs also help you where possible, by warning you if you attempt to visit a Web page that’s been previously identified as dangerous. Here’s an example:

VPN If you’re connecting to your corporate intranet through the Internet, you might have to use a VPN (Virtual Private Network), which encrypts everything sent back and forth. Your organisation’s IT policy will tell you how to manage the security aspects of the VPN.

Backups You work away from the office now, so think more carefully about disaster recovery – that is, being able to recover from the loss of valuable data. Recovering digital information quickly is only possible if you have backups of your precious data.

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Backing up regularly does take some effort, and it’s easy to neglect it. However, taking backups – like buying insurance – gives you peace of mind. There’s an old saying in computing circles: There are two types of people: those who take backups and those who’ve never had a disk crash. Modern backup systems are fast and automatic, so there’s really no excuse for not using them.

I use the on-line backup service Carbonite.com which, for less than $100 a year, automatically backs up my important data files to their secure Web server, from which I can retrieve them if necessary. Despite this level of protection, I also do my own daily backups to an external hard disk, and transfer them again to DVD each month. Strictly speaking, these additional backups are not necessary; but when it comes to backups, there’s no such thing as doing too much.

I use software that performs an incremental backup each day, copying all files created or changed in the preceding 24 hours; and a full backup – that is, copies of every file – once a week. Your backups need to be stored ‘off-site’ if possible. If your house burns to the ground with your backup disks in it, then all your backup efforts will have been reduced to ashes. An on-line backup service like Carbonite.com provides this level of protection. Your backups are stored in the Cloud, so if the worst

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happens and you lose everything, you simply ask Carbonite to restore everything to your new computer. You don’t need an on-line backup service (and it’s only viable if you have a fast Internet connection with a generous monthly data allowance), but you do need some backup facility. When you plan your strategy for backups, the key is to consider how quickly and accurately you can recover from the worst-case scenario. For instance, even with an on-line backup service that backs up your files instantly, it might take a long time to download those files later, if you lose everything. That’s why we both use other backup options as well.

Disaster prevention You should also take steps to protect yourself from minor problems that could lead to disasters. Power failures or spikes can lead to loss of your working files or permanent damage to your computer. At the very least, fit surge protectors to delicate equipment such as computers, or invest in an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). A UPS is, in effect, a large battery that continues to supply power for several minutes after a power outage. This gives you time to save your working files and shut down equipment safely. Laptops and other portable computers have a built-in battery, and so don’t need a UPS; but it’s a wise investment for desktop computers and servers.

But you are the weakest link! Despite all the high-profile stories of viruses, scams and on-line security problems, technology really has improved our on-line security. However, people are now the weakest link in the security chain. The ultimate security software is your own brain! We’ve already urged you to choose secure passwords, and that’s an important first step. However, it’s not enough, and you do need to keep your wits about you at all times.

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For example, the 419 Nigerian Scam, one of the oldest Internet scams, attempts to lure unsuspecting Internet users into giving away their money in return for a promise of millions of dollars. Like many scams, it doesn’t rely on technology; it relies on human gullibility (and greed). Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and Google+, fun and useful as they are, are also potentially dangerous because people have a false sense of security among ‚friends‛. Facebook, Twitter and Google+ make it easy to give strangers access to private and confidential information. You wouldn’t allow a total stranger the right to wander in and out of your home, so don’t expose too much to strangers on social media sites. Some hackers attempt to trick you by masquerading as somebody in authority. This is known as ‘phishing’, a play on the word ‘fishing’ (The bad guys are hoping gullible victims will take the bait). For example, you might receive a message apparently from your bank, with a link to a Web site that looks just like the bank’s site. However, it’s a fake site designed to collect your bank details and password (That’s why banks and other such organisations never ask for confidential information by e-mail). This happens even with non-banking sites, so don’t let your guard down. For instance, here’s an e-mail message that looks like it’s from the business networking site LinkedIn:

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It looks innocent enough, especially as it doesn’t mention financial details, passwords or security breaches – as many of the other phishing e-mails do. However, that innocuous-looking ‚Adjust your message settings‛ link is the trap: if you click it, it takes you to a Web page that attempts to trick you into revealing your LinkedIn password. If you’d like to test your ability to spot a phishing attempt, try the free 10-question SonicWALL Phishing and Spam IQ Quiz13. Sadly, most people perform poorly on this quiz, and only a few are able to answer all questions correctly (Gihan scored 9 out of 10; but in his defence, the question he got wrong was a legitimate e-mail he suspected was a phishing attempt – which is better than the other way around). If you’re a Mac user, be especially alert. In the past, most malicious attacks were aimed at Windows users, because Windows was full of security holes, and also had a huge market share. However, it’s now more secure, and Mac market share is gradually increasing; so security experts estimate Mac users are now at least as likely as Windows users to be the target of attacks. Phishing attacks are aimed at people, not computers; so Mac users, who have never needed to be alert to these problems in the past, might even be easier targets now. Phishing is still widespread, partly because it works and partly because technology has closed many of the other avenues available to intruders. There really is no alternative to being vigilant and taking responsibility for your own actions on the Internet. Don’t let the technological measures lull you into a false sense of security! By the same token, though, don’t become obsessed. Be more alert when there’s a risk of giving out confidential information (for

At www.SonicWALL.com/phishing.

Out of Office

example, on-line banking requests or unusual e-mail messages from your boss supposedly asking you to send her Top Secret documents), but relax when there’s a lower risk (for example, your partner asking you to get milk on the way home). Immerse yourself more – not less – in the Internet culture, so it becomes familiar to you. You’re safer in your home town in familiar surroundings than as a naive tourist wandering through a strange city; and the same applies on-line. Above all, use common sense in the on-line world, just as you would in the physical world.

More Resources There are a number of excellent resources available to help you with your personal productivity. One of our own is a podcast episode about personal productivity in the Internet era. This is available both in audio format and as a slide presentation. This and other resources are available in our resource centre.

On-Line Resource Centre See page 17 for the password to the on-line resource centre, or scan the QR code on the right with your smart phone to go to it immediately.

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Glossary Of Terms Android: Google’s operating system for running mobile devices such as smart phones and tablet computers. Android phone: Any phone running the Android operating system. Unlike the iPhone, which is only provided by Apple, Android phones are available from a range of manufacturers, who have all licensed the Android operating system from Google. app (application software): Computer program that runs on smart phones and tablet computers. ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line): A technology for broadband Internet access. anti-virus software: Computer software that checks other computer programs and files for possible viruses. backup: Making copies of important files to protect against computer failure. blog (short for ‘Web log’): A Web site that’s an on-line diary or journal – that is, a series of entries posted periodically and arranged in chronological order. broadband: A technology for fast Internet access. Different types of broadband include ADSL, cable and wireless. browser: Computer software for visiting and interacting with Web sites. Examples include Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera and Safari. cable: A technology for broadband Internet access. chat room: An Internet forum where users gather to discuss (in real-time) topics of common interest.

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Cloud Computing (the Cloud): A technology for providing computer software and data via the Internet rather than from a local computer. conference call: A telephone call involving more than two people. Also known as a teleconference. data plan: The fees charged by a mobile phone company for wireless broadband access. discussion forum: A group (either a mailing list or a Web forum) where people post messages to discuss particular topics. Unlike a chat room, where the participants are all present at the same time, a discussion forum stores the messages for other participants to read later. download: The process of transferring information from the Internet to your computer (the opposite of upload). e-mail newsletter: A newsletter sent to its subscribers by e-mail. encryption: Encoding information so it can only be read by people who have the ‘key’ to ‘decrypt’ it. extranet: The part of an organisation’s internal computer network that can be accessed remotely via the Internet. e-zine: See e-mail newsletter. Facebook: A social media site, started as an exclusive site for university students, but now the largest site of its kind in the world, with over 800 million users at the time of writing. FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions): A collection of the most common questions and answers about a particular subject. ’FAQ’ is pronounced ‘fack’ or spelled out ‘F-A-Q’. file hosting: Storing computer files in the Cloud rather than on your computer’s hard disk.

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file sharing: Giving multiple people access to a file stored in the Cloud. Some file hosting services also support file sharing. filter (e-mail): A rule for automatic processing of incoming e-mail. firewall: A computer and its security software (or just the security software alone) that sit between an organisation’s internal computer network and the Internet, protecting the network from external security breaches. flame: An abusive message posted in a discussion forum, either written to show contempt for another user or to bait them into an argument (known as a ‘flame war’). geo-location: Identifying the location of a device such as a mobile phone or computer. geo-tagging: Adding location information to such things as photos, video clips and Web feeds. Google+: Google’s social media site (not its first attempt, but its most successful by far), launched in mid-2011. GPS (Global Positioning System): An electronic device that uses satellite signals to determine its geographical coordinates. Many smart phones and tablet computers incorporate a GPS. help desk: A person or team that provides people with technical assistance, either by phone or via a Web site. IM (Instant Messaging): An on-line communication tool for realtime, text-based conversations. Internet café: A café that provides computers and wireless Internet access at an hourly rate. ISP (Internet Service Provider): A business that connects you to the Internet. intranet: The part of an organisation’s internal computer network that uses Internet tools, such as e-mail, Web pages, wikis, etc.

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iPad: Appleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tablet computer, which re-defined the tablet computer and sparked a resurgence of interest in that market. iPhone: Appleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smart phone. laptop computer (also known as a notebook computer): A portable, lightweight personal computer. LinkedIn: A business networking site â&#x20AC;&#x201C; one of the earliest social media sites, even before that term became popular. lurker: A member of a discussion forum who reads forum posts but does not contribute any of their own. netbook computer: A laptop computer that is particularly light and compact, and designed specifically with Internet services in mind (so it might not be as powerful as other laptop computers). mailing list: In this book, this refers to a discussion forum operated by e-mail. In other places, this is also used to refer to an e-mail newsletter (that is, for one-way messages only). on-line fax service: A service for sending and receiving fax messages by e-mail (that is, without a fax machine). operating system: The software that manages a computer and allows application programs to run. password wallet: A program that securely stores your passwords and automatically provides them when you attempt to log in to a Web site. Access to the wallet is protected by a master password. phishing (electronic fishing): Internet scams that attempt to trick users into divulging personal information. plug-in: Software that adds extra features to an existing program. podcast: A series of audio (and sometimes video) recordings released periodically downloaded via a Web feed. query: What you type to ask a search engine to find information for you.

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return receipt: An automated e-mail reply indicating a message has been received by its intended recipient. roaming: The ability to use a mobile phone in other countries without changing the phone’s SIM card. RSS (Really Simple Syndication): A type of Web feed, often used for blogs and podcasts. search engine: A Web site that lets you search for information on the Internet by typing in key words or topic areas. screen sharing: Software that allows others to see and interact with your computer desktop via the Internet. smart phone: An advanced mobile phone that typically includes a high-resolution touch screen, camera, GPS and Internet access. Examples include Apple’s iPhone and Android phones. SIM (Subscriber Information Module): A small electronic card that, when installed in a mobile device, connects it to the mobile phone network. Skype: The name of a company and their software for making VoIP phone calls. SMS (Short Message Service): A technology for sending and receiving short text messages via the mobile phone network. social media site: An on-line service that allows communities of people to connect with each other on a social basis. Leading social media sites include Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Google+. Note: Strictly speaking, we should call these ‘social networks’ rather than ‘social media’, the latter being a broader term that refers to the technologies of collaboration and participation underlying social networks, blogs, wikis and the like. But the term social media is commonly used to refer to these social networking sites, so that’s how we have used it in this book. spam: Unsolicited junk e-mail.

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surge protector: An appliance that prevents damage to delicate electrical equipment from voltage spikes in the power supply. tablet computer: A thin handheld computer – usually the size of a book or magazine – that has a touch screen for interaction, and typically incorporates a camera and Internet access. Examples include Apple’s iPad and Android tablets. telecommuting: A working arrangement in which a person uses the Internet and similar services to work from home. tethering: Sharing a smart phone’s Internet connection with other devices. troll: Someone who deliberately posts inflammatory messages to on-line discussion forums. tweet: A message posted on Twitter. Twitter: A social media site whose members communicate by posting short (up 140 characters) text messages. upload: The process of transferring information from your computer to the Internet (opposite of download). UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supply): An appliance that provides temporary electrical power in the event of a power failure. USB (Universal Serial Bus): A type of connector for attaching various devices to your computer. virtual (office) assistant: An office administrator who works from home. VPN (Virtual Private Network): A technology for providing a secure, encrypted Internet connection. VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol): A technology for making telephone calls over the Internet. virus: A malicious software program designed to damage a computer system.

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Web host: A company that provides computing resources for hosting Web sites. Web forum: A kind of on-line discussion forum hosted on a Web site (rather than a mailing list). webinar: A seminar conducted via the Web. Webmaster: The person responsible for maintaining a Web site. Web feed: A system for delivering messages on selected topics directly to your computer; often used by blogs and podcasts. wiki: A Web site whose pages are collaboratively edited by a group of people (‘Wiki’ is a Hawaiian word meaning ‘quick’). wireless: A technology for Internet access that doesn’t require physical cables. workshifting: A form of telecommuting in which you have flexible working hours and location. YouTube: A Web site, owned by Google, for viewing and sharing video clips.

About Chris and Gihan

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About Chris And Gihan Chris Pudney is a data visualization consultant and software developer. He helps clients gain insight into, and understanding from, their business data through the application of novel visualization techniques. Chris is also an avid Internet technology enthusiast with more than 20 years experience using the Internet for fun and profit. Chris has a PhD in Computer Science from The University of Western Australia. He has published several academic papers on the processing and visualization of scientific data. Gihan Perera is a consultant, speaker and author who helps professional speakers, trainers, coaches, consultants, thought leaders and other business professionals to leverage their products, services and business practices â&#x20AC;&#x201C; particularly on-line. This is the latest of his published books, which include others in the area of on-line strategy, effective webinars, marketing and writing.

Find out more about us at OutOfOfficeBook.com.