Remote Work: The Complete Guide - Chapter IV-2

Communication is the key to your success-and to everyone else's.

Article Series

• Introduction: roadmap for the series.
• Chapter I: You were already doing remote work before.
• Chapter II: After the diagnosis comes change. Which communication channel fits which need?
• Chapter III: Hours, routine, discipline.
• Chapter IV-1: Team organization.
• Bonus: The Coffee Machine.
• Chapter IV-2: Team organization - Communication (you are here).
• More chapters depending on your reactions.

I know-the previous chapter may not have been what you expected. But it sets the stage for this one and the next.

This time I lean heavily on Work Clean: The Life-Changing Power of Mise-en-Place to Organize Your Life, Work, and Mind by Dan Charnas. It covers communication in depth and is a goldmine if you struggle with organization, perfectionism, and more. Highly recommended.

Remote Work Requires More Communication

If you're not convinced, revisit Chapter IV-1.

You also need to communicate better.

Remote Work Is an Asynchronous World

Unless you hop from video call to video call all day (please don't), you now operate in an asynchronous environment.

You ask a question... you don't get the answer right away. You might not know when-or if-it's coming.

Most exchanges happen in writing. Meanwhile, social media has trained us to value speed over clarity, favoring video, GIFs, and tweets.

We confuse speed with haste. At work, quality writing matters more than ever: concise yet thorough, well-structured, unambiguous.

Take the time to craft a clear message. It saves countless back-and-forth emails: "Where's that info?" "Did we discuss this?" "I don't remember talking about it!"

The Impact of a Well-Written Message

First corollary: a well-written message gets read properly. Obvious, but worth repeating. Read carefully.

Second: store information logically. Not buried in random inboxes. (If you want to tame your email, Inbox Zero is brutal but effective.)

Accessible information helps everyone-anytime.

Need proof? Basecamp, whose founders we mentioned earlier, works entirely asynchronously. They even wrote a piece on their Hill Charts approach to project management. It's about shared clarity from start to finish.

Accuse Reception, Engage, Inform

Now for the kitchen metaphor.

At the shootout I used Nichoir d'Ormes-the team running our cars-as an example. They summarized the chef mindset perfectly:

1. Accuse reception.
When someone asks for something, acknowledge it-even if you can't reply right away. "Noted, I'll get back to you by [timeframe]."

2. Engage.
Estimate the effort. Lexic uses ideation or prepared statements-answering what you're asked, not just how long it will take.

• If you don't understand the request, clarify immediately.
• If it's a bad idea, say so and explain why. That's healthy conflict.
• If it's doable but not for you, redirect to the right person.
• If you can do it, outline how: "Here's the approach, I'll have it by [timeframe]."

Commitment matters. Don't throw out a random date just to look responsive. You'd betray your team's trust.

3. Inform.
Keep people updated as you go. Share progress, hurdles, completion. That way no one is left guessing.

Military Vibes? Not Exactly

Yes, the phrasing sounds a bit like a kitchen brigade. That's intentional. Chefs are masters of team communication.

Orders fly: "One tournedos, two Caesars!" Responses echo back: "One tournedos, chef!" "Two Caesars, chef!"

Why? The server needs confirmation; the cooks need clarity. The chef shouts to acknowledge receipt and to broadcast the order. No ambiguity.

If I, half-deaf commis, mishear "tournedos" as "dos de cabillaud," Etchebest knows instantly something went wrong. No surprises later.

If They Didn't Understand, You Didn't Explain

Simple principle: when your teammates misunderstand, the problem is your explanation.

When Clarence asks a "stupid" question about your email, remember this. When Regis delivers something off-target, it's because you weren't clear.

Ambiguity kills engagement. If teammates don't know where you're heading, how can they help?

Use the accuse reception -> engage -> inform loop. Communicate intentions and emotions. You'll be amazed at the difference.

Without Communication, You Can't Distribute Work

Communication deserves an entire book, so we'll stop here.

Remember: our job is to get the work done.

Next time we'll cover task distribution in remote teams. Clear tasks and clear purpose. We'll peek at how dev teams use Agile methods and how that translates to other fields-plus the tools that support remote work.

See you soon. :)