What inspired you to return to France for a 4-month trip?
I have reached a point in my life where I have spent exactly the same amount of time in France as I have in Australia (14 years in each) and lately felt the pull to return to France for a longer period than the usual 3-week holiday, juggling seeing family, visiting Paris, and discovering new towns. I wanted to return less as a tourist and connect more with my French side.
How does your role as a project manager in branding and web design typically function?
I manage our 20+ projects by tracking their timelines, checking in on the team to see how web designs and developments are going, communicating with clients about any requests, questions, or issues, and working on the early stages of brand identity and strategy for the projects. I have a really supportive boss, Terri, who has worked with me to make it all function while I'm away despite the significant time differences.
How did you prepare for working remotely from France?
From day one, even in my interview, I mentioned I was keen to do this big trip, so we had 8 months to prepare! I focused on learning my role first, getting into a really good rhythm and routine, with remote work in the back of my mind. I calculated the time difference and proposed a way for us to still communicate face-to-face a few times a week (which means very early starts for me but worth it) and how to communicate tasks that my team needed me to complete.
We informed all our clients about my change of location and hours, gave my team access to my emails for emergencies, and provided my availability in my email signature along with my WhatsApp number if needed.
What was also great is that we did a practice run while I traveled to Bali for two weeks where there was only a 1.5-hour time difference, and we had no issues there.
What tools and technologies do you use to stay connected with your team in Australia?
I used the same setup I've had since beginning work, keeping it simple to get used to working with a laptop. My biggest saver is a foldable laptop stand that folds into the size of a ruler but really makes my laptop viewing more ergonomic, fixing the back and neck issues I was developing! I must say I'm looking forward to setting up a screen monitor and having multiple tabs open on a larger screen when I get back!
How do you manage the time difference between France and Australia?
There is a 7.5-hour time difference, which is huge! Also, making time to sightsee and experience this trip, I spread my usual three days a week to half days, five days a week, working from 6am-10am (which was 1.30pm-5.30pm ADL time). This gave me the rest of the day to myself and allowed me to be available online for work at a good time in Adelaide.
This changed slightly when I started staying with host families, part of the WorkAway program, which teams you up with families who you work for half the day doing house duties, cooking, cleaning, etc., in exchange for a room and meals. During this time, I called at 6am for a check-in and then worked the other hours in my own time – flexibility was a real lifesaver!
How has your daily routine changed since moving to France?
My routine has COMPLETELY changed. As an extremely organised person who lives off routine, this has been my biggest challenge. I am sharing a room with someone I didn't know (but have actually become really good friends with), so I had to take my early bedtimes and early starts into consideration. I talk to my team over video, which isn't the same as real life (I keep missing all the jokes!) I work four hours for my host family and then have the afternoon free to schedule my work. My days change – I might be traveling, going out for dinner, or having a quiet day by the pool journalling and painting. I have total autonomy, which I really enjoy.
How do you maintain productivity while balancing work and travel?
Work has been really positive for me. It's the only routine I have kept, an anchor to Australia whenever I feel homesick. Talking to the team makes me so happy and keeps me feeling connected. To maintain productivity, I make sure to find a comfortable spot, put on my headphones, and write myself a checklist of what needs to be done. Starting early allows me to make the most of my days, letting me get the best of both worlds.
What advice would you give to someone considering working remotely from another country?
Make sure you discuss it with your team early on so that it doesn't become a surprise and you don't leave with unfinished work and unclear work conditions. You want everyone to feel comfortable and confident about this big change in the team dynamic.
Always have GOOD WiFi where you're staying, and if you don't, get yourself a SIM card with lots of data so that you can hotspot! Find somewhere you can video call freely in the early mornings – no one wants to be woken up at 6am with you blabbering on in your headphones! Use organisational programs to keep the communication clear (we use Slack for communication and ClickUp for project tracking).
How do you see remote work evolving in your industry?
We already have a good remote working culture where we can work from a café or at home if we prefer and need to change up our environment! Terri traveled to the Philippines and Korea and worked with no issues, so I think moving forward, if anyone in the team was interested, they could! But for now, I think they'd be keen on a non-working holiday – they're hard workers ;)
Do you plan to continue working remotely in the future?
I've done quite a bit of it after Bali and France. My next travel plans are Japan, but I'm going for a short period and will treat this one as a real holiday! However, it's amazing to know it's an option for sure.
