The soul of working from home is flexibility. You don’t have to hurry up for going to the office. Nor do you try hard for peace of mind. It’s like a complimentary gift to go on smoothly while achieving your daily targets and productivity.
But, there is another aspect of this unique work experience, which is not so beautiful or pleasing. It is concerned with IT or technical flaws or breakdowns.
What if your system does not boot and the virtual meeting is likely to occur in a few minutes? What if a virus or ransomware freezes your screen and the client requires some immediate changes in the web design?
There can be similar problems that often hamper the smooth flow of your work from home. Such technical problems can be minimized if you’re aware of some valuable tips and tricks.
IT Support Tips for Smooth Work From Home
Here are a few tips to minimize the pain of irregular work from home because of technical flaws.
Get Ready with a Contingency Plan
A contingency plan can save your day. It’s all about planning how to recover from possible future events, instances, or circumstances. Various companies have realised the requirement for a full-fledged contingency plan because of COVID-19.
This plan can help you come out of a tech emergency quickly. Many companies have improved their way of working. Hybrid working is in. Almost 63% of high-growth companies favour this model of working from anywhere, according to a web source. So, it’s possible that your company has an IT help desk to support remotely. Secure the contact information of at least one IT person in your office.
There is another case. It is the situation when you do not have any tech support. Nor can your company provide it. To overcome such a possibility, do some research and align at least one resource during working hours. He can help you out of technical troubles.
If such possibility is not there, hire a gig partner/company. It drafts some steps to build managed services for your business. Such professionals are mostly certified and experienced enough to discover prospective instances related to IT or technology.
Find IT Support in Your Network
Many small enterprises are there that cannot hire a full-time IT expert. For them, outsourcing tech support can be the best alternative. But, the challenge is how to find a reliable tech engineer who has hands-on experience also.
An unfortunate incident occurred recently in the UK, wherein the iSpoof website is advertised on the internet. It illegally allowed server access to criminals to make anonymous calls using a spoof phone number. They allegedly victimised innocents by pretending themselves as employees of banks, such Barclays, Santander, HSBC, Lloyds, Halifax, First Direct, NatWest, Nationwide, and TSB.
The cyberspies took a one-time code or password for breaking into their account details through their phone. iSpoof server seized that data and provided those sensitive details to fraudsters. There is no need to assume what they would have done with that data. They cleared out the accounts of all victims.
It happened because of unawareness of such malicious attempts, which can cost hefty losses besides compromising on data. It’s a lesson to understand the sensitivity associated with technology. Unknown support can leverage this unawareness, and steal your sensitive data. Later on, accessing your bank account won’t be a big deal for him.
So, prefer your own network. Look for the tech support options in your own circle. Ask your colleagues, friends, family, or neighbours if they have any reliable references. Their referred gig partner can provide a small business with IT support in London, or where you live. Or, it can be available for an individual also.
Be a Professional
There may be some possibilities that the support is not available. If it’s not an emergency, you can reach out to your IT person by email or messaging via a communication app. This is the most polite way to request assistance.
On the flip side, there can be an urgent meeting or delivery aligned and your system is not supporting you. It’s an emergency. You have to get your system fixed. At that time, you have to be patient and request the concerned person this way:
- a) Be Gentle & Polite: Take into account that your technical issue is not the only problem that the IT person handles. There may be some more critical problems that he might be busy resolving. Here, patience is the key, and it’s appreciable.
- b) Give Time to Respond: You should wait for at least three to four hours in case he is not responding. You can reach out again afterward.
- c) Follow Professional Approach: Sometimes, it seems challenging to contact the concerned person. A few lose their patience and start tracing him insanely through messages and calls. Avoid such invasion of their privacy. Just gently request for assistance.
Try Yourself
Don’t give up if you see any technical glitches. At least, try out some hacks that are shared on social forums by experts, and blogs. Just do your own research. There would be a few solutions that can help you out.
Or, you may try other alternatives, such as virtually connecting with software developers and getting solutions on live chats, no matter what the time is.
Besides, it should be remembered that prevention is better than cure. You can keep technical problems at bay by being regular with software updates. Every software or app comes up with a refined version. It not only introduces new features but also launches patches. Also, install an antivirus to track and avoid technical faults. Always take the backup of your data for retrieving immediately if you lose them. These IT support tips and tricks can make you a low-maintenance client.
Scan Slow Processing of the Computer
Sometimes, your device does not work properly. It hangs and takes time in opening applications. This might be a problem of overheating or many temp files that are cluttered. You can check them by typing %temp% in the Windows search bar of your system. As you click, all temp files will appear on the screen. You just select and delete to vacate some space in your system.
There is another instance, which is associated with the internal software. Ensure that it is up-to-date. An outdated one might be problematic. Scan your system and delete bloatware, which is unused or unnecessary applications/files occupying disk space.
You can also run a virus scan to discover and remove viruses, spyware, malware, or any other malicious attempt on your system. This practice can help you speed up your work flow.
Summary
There are a few tips and tricks for IT support and managing your tasks smoothly while doing work from home. Prepare your own contingency plan, scan the causes of the slow processing of your system, behave as a professional does, and arrange support or IT assistance through your own network of friends & relatives.
