Is it hard to imagine day-to-day life outside of a typical office grind? Does the phrase "working from home" give you all kinds of strange, conflicting ideas?
Have you ever said (or heard other people say) something like "I could never work from home, because I would..." to be followed by "never get anything done!" or maybe, "go CRAZY!" or "never put on real clothes." or even "get way too lonely."
All of these reactions are perfectly natural. We have been conditioned to think that work is a set of repeated tasks experienced in a centralized setting, performed entirely separate from the rest of our lives. But is that really the only way? HeroX, like many companies, disagrees. Strongly. HeroX is 100% remote, meaning we all work from home (or the beach, or a cafe in Berlin, or a glacial lake, or a small farm.) We get dressed (eventually.) We get sh*t done. We have thriving, meaningful relationships with our coworkers, even the ones living three time zones away. It's not magic, it's just that HeroX has it figured out. The recipe is simple, actually, and has a lot to do with three core beliefs we carry into everything.
Do What You Love. Do What Feels Effortless.
How you feel about what you do every day (which is different from your "job title") may be the single strongest predictor for overall performance, productivity, and job satisfaction. Tasks that come naturally to you are the ones you feel the least resistance toward. Without resistance or reluctance, you are able to give your highest effort and really feel good about the process. The results generated from this kind of alignment create a flow of positive feedback that encourages ever greater contribution, ownership, and -- ultimately -- creative freedom. Not everything you do during the day is going to be
Laziness + Accountability = Efficiency
We have a core value at HeroX, and it’s called “Do it the Easy Way.” Literally. No catch. This isn’t some secret test to see who works the hardest and who takes the “easy way” bait. Quite the opposite. Just like working inside of your true strengths allows you to perform at your highest level, finding “shortcuts” and refusing unrealistic workloads is essential to creating a thriving organization. Think of it this way: the easy way often saves money. If nothing else, it minimizes frustration, which then becomes resentment. We’ll take some cut corners over resentment any day. Does this mean we encourage low-quality work? Absolutely not. The key is that the “laziness” that often leads to the “easy way” is partnered with a serious level of accountability. At HeroX, each team member is openly committed to individual and company-wide goals, and pretty lofty ones at that. Once on the path of attaining these goals it only makes sense to seek the most actionable, automated, and empowering way to get there. By freeing ourselves from attachment to previous ways of doing things, anything is possible. If nothing else, HeroX stands for limitless possibilities, and it just wouldn’t make sense for our internal operations to function any other way.
Acknowledgement and Transparency for Authentic Relationships
One the most indispensable attributes of the HeroX team is how we gel together. While we mostly operate in smaller teams, every week the entire company comes together to share all of the good news in our lives, celebrate company victories, acknowledge individuals for outstanding feats of courage and service, and look to where we can improve. It’s inside of these meetings -- and similar ones -- where HeroX comes alive as a company. A video conference room full of “disembodied” heads may seem like the last place where you would find a rich connection, gut-busting humor, and witness some of the most moving and inspiring exchanges; but that’s a typical Wednesday with the team. That said, we’re no stranger to straight-talk and dealing with our issues head-on. It’s just that those moments are heavily outweighed rip-roaring laughter, babies and puppies on camera, and lots of happy tears. As a result of these powerful connections, every member of HeroX stands for everyone else. We simply won’t have it any other way. Need a mental health day? Attending to personal or family goals? Feeling overwhelmed? Someone has your back, even if we have to pry you away from your work (for your own good.) The word “supportive” only begins to describe our dedication to each other’s success. It is indeed a rare and beautiful level of trust and respect that we share.
So there you have it: our secret recipe. All in all, it's not that complicated...or secret. Put simply, HeroX wants the best possible world, and we know we'll only get there with the best possible humans. That means whole humans; ones who love what they do and easily see the greatness in each other. We travel, we take care of our children and pets, we set our own hours, and at the end of the day each of us is powerfully committed to the future of crowdsourcing, work, and humanity as a whole. So if this speaks to you, let us know. We'd love to have you.
