Remote Alone
Remote work is often discussed in the context of teams, but its practices and principles are also useful in a solo-developer situation.
Evergreen Communication is the Real Remote
Contrary to what the term suggests, remote work does not necessarily refer to colleagues' proximity to one another, but to the way they communicate, which we call Evergreen.
Evergreen Communication is:
- Async, meaning without the expectation of immediate response.
- Preserved, meaning kept in whole, in order, for everybody to see, forever.
Evergreen Communication is indeed independent of physical location. An entirely on-site team sitting across one another can implement it and be more successful than a similar team working remotely, using zoom to emulate meeting rooms.
Faster Onboarding is key to Remote Alone
Once we understand that Evergreen Communication is the basis for what we call "remote work" (which is more like "location-agnostic work"), let's examine one interesting benefit it has in teams, and see how it benefits the solo developer: faster onboarding.
Sure, it useful if the solo developer will eventually hire someone. For the long-term solo developer, consider this thought exercise: what's the difference between a new hire and a forgetfull senior?
That is an exaggeration of what is undeniable reality. We all have points where we are as useful as a new hire. We then have to re-onboard ourselves, and that's made easy when all the resources are in order and available.
Even if we can pull the missing piece out of our memory, it can sometimes be much less of a mental load to look it up in preserved history.
Faster onboarding is a result of autonomy enabled by abundant resources -- both consumed and produced. That autonomy is useful no matter the team size.
Dogma is the Enemy
The fact that remote work practices are useful for many people in many cases does not mean it is useful for all people in all cases. That is how it is.
Where To?
If you've never done remote before, or if you've only done the physical distance aspect without changing any of the processes or practices to be more async, check out Emergency Remote, our short booklet that will help you hit the ground running.