Recruiters need to see that you are not looking for remort work just to slack off. Also, they want to know if you are suitable for the work-from-home job. That is where the question “Why do you want to work remotely?” comes.
You cannot respond to this question with silly answers like “I just want to stay in pajamas all day”. With a reasonable reply, you can impress your employer and get a step closer to landing the job.
Read this article to prepare for the question of why work remotely.
How to Answer “Why Do You Want to Work Remotely?” Question
Sometimes, the interviewer may ask the same question in a different format like
- Why is a work-at-home position attractive to you? or
- Name something appealing about working from home job.
In whatever form the question comes, if you follow the steps mentioned below, you can frame an appealing answer.
1. Plan Ahead
It is always hard to think of a valuable answer on the spot with all the nervousness you most probably have during the interview. Therefore, start thinking about what you can say when such a question arises.
Your reasons to work remotely should seem fair to the employer. There are many potential answers. For example –
- Your productivity increases when you work from home as there are fewer distractions.
- It is not the remote job that appeals to you, it is the company.
- As you live in a rural area, there are not many opportunities, and shifting to another place is not an option for you.
- Your home environment helps you to stay focused and perform better.
- Commuting to the organization takes a lot of time.
2. Don’t Just Focus on Remote Benefits of the Job
When HR listens to your answer, they should not feel like you are applying to this job only because of its remote access.
Any recruiter does not advertise open positions just because they want a candidate who is willing to work from remote locations, rather they desire the one who is suitable for the job.
Therefore, it is crucial to speak about other aspects of the position. Emphasize how working from home can improve your performance on the job. Also, make sure to talk about other things about the work that excites you.
3. Show Confidence and Your Willingness to Learn
In case you have no prior experience in remote jobs, the hiring manager might become hesitant to consider you. However, if you show your willingness to learn new skills and confidence in working well independently can change the recruiter’s mind.
While answering the question about your reasons to work remotely, be upfront and ask any doubts you have about anything. Make it clear that you have the motivation to learn and push past any challenges.
Also, CNN states that as per Gallup’s 2021 Global Emotions Index, 40% of adults worldwide experienced a lot of stress during 2020. As we know 2020 is the year when most people work from home.
Moreover, according to a poll done by Monster, 69% of remote workers came across burnout symptoms during COVID-19.
So, you need to tell the interviewers how you can maintain your work-life balance.
4. Concentrate on the Value You Can Add
Before any interview, the most basic thing to do is to research the company and your job role. Once you have done that, you can understand what the company is looking for.
Now, think about how you can add value to the enterprise. Use your experience and write down how this job role and organization can align with your career goals, skills, and interests.
You can learn more about it by clicking here – 12 Proven Tips to Get Better at Job Interviews
5. Stress the Importance of the Company’s Mission
By talking about the mission of an organization, you let the recruiters know that you are sincere about the job and did thorough research. It helps in building trust which is very important for remote jobs.
Knowing the company’s mission means that you want to create a career and grow with the enterprise. So, your chance of getting remote work increases with this step.
6. Practice
To give your answers smoothly and confidently, you need to practice. Just reading off a script does not translate your determination, so you need to rehearse your responses.
One way to do this is to get help from a friend or family member and let them pose as an interviewer where they ask questions and you give replies. Or else you can just video or audio record your responses and evaluate them yourself.
Also, check out the guide on Common Remote Job Interview Questions and Answers as well.
Example of Why Do You Want to Work From Home Answers
“Why do you want to work remotely?” question is a great opportunity to demonstrate your motivation, ability to work independently, and other skills like time management, organization, and communication.
Here are the remote interview question sample answers that you can adapt to your situation and job role.
Example 1
I want to work remotely because the open office environment is distracting with many people working in the same space. I am a focused person, but I find it hard to concentrate in an office.
Interruptions from colleagues can pull me away in the middle of writing a blog and refocusing on the content can take some time. So, it is best to write the content without any interrupting breaks.
Having the flexibility to set my own intervals can help me to finish an article efficiently. I can take a break after the completion of an article or after some paragraphs instead of getting disturbed in the middle of a sentence.
Example 2
Commuting to work stresses me and it affects my work focus.
Usually, it takes an hour and a half to reach the office. Then, I need 30 minutes to be in my cubicle and get my focus on the work.
I have so much energy before I start my journey to the office and instead of losing it to travel stress, I can utilize it to get my work done. And use the journey time to get my personal things done like cleaning, cooking, etc.
So, I am willing to work remotely to reduce my stress and increase my productivity.
Example 3
We have shifted from the center of the city to the outskirts because of my husband’s job. It is hard to commute to the office and I need to be back by 5 o’clock for my kids.
With flexible timings, I can complete my household chores before and after work. During business hours without any worry about my family, I can completely focus on the job which I did not know was possible during my office workdays as I tend to worry about my kids.
Working from home enables me to take care of my kids, spend quality time with them and maintain a work-life balance.
Also, read 15 Companies that Hire for Remote Customer Service Jobs
Interesting Facts
My Perfect Resume has done a survey to unveil the remote workers’ grievances and in a distanced and fragile work environment how those grievances can act as a tinderbox. Thus, as per The Blow-By-blow On Remote Work Conflict survey, 80% of work-from-home employees experience workplace conflict.
According to the study done by Bridge,
- 56% of millennials believe that one should work at the same company for over 20 years.
- Almost 90% of millennials wish to grow their careers with their current organizations. Also, they are loyal to the enterprises that offer career growth.
- Without personal development opportunities, 67% of millennials leave their jobs. And, 86% of them would stay if a company has growth and leadership opportunities. It is needless to say learning new skills motivate them to stay in your organization.
Actually, Forbes says that youngsters these days do not have faith in college. They don’t believe that it will prepare them adequately and so they want companies to offer training opportunities.
Therefore, in an interview, you can tell them that you want to grow your career and ask them about the kind of opportunities they can offer.
Conclusion
The most common remote job interview question is – “Why do you want to work remotely?”. So, take a look at the points mentioned in this article and practice your responses so you can appear confident and sincere.
Remember to focus on remote work benefits that your employer will gain by recruiting you and talk less about the privileges you get.
Also, you can apply for remote jobs from the site, HomeJobsHub. It offers work-from-home jobs in various fields and with reliable partners so you can easily earn a living.
On top of that, the site uses an AI-powered system that notifies you whenever a recruiter posts a job that matches your requirements and skills. Therefore, you can get a job in less time.
Just sign up from here so you can start applying for remote jobs.
