Meet Crystal Reitmeir, Qualified's product marketing extraordinaire. Crystal joined Qualified as a remote-first employee and shares her experience within our Zoom-first culture. Read on to learn about how Crystal stays connected ⬇️

What’s your favorite thing about being remote-first?

Crystal: There are pros and cons to being fully remote, hybrid, or in the office. For me personally, I enjoy being remote-first because it gives me so much flexibility in my day. I can get up, walk my dog, and have a relaxing morning with my coffee. 

I don't have to have that stress of catching the train and being smooshed up against people inside…and getting to wear sweats all day! 

But of course, it has its drawbacks. I don't necessarily get to see all of my colleagues day in and day out, and that's definitely something that I miss. But for the most part, skipping the commute and wearing pants with an elastic waistband are my favorite things.

What's your daily routine like for working?

Crystal: I wake up in the morning, get ready, I take my dog for a walk—which is a really nice way to start the day. It's kind of my new commute. Then I come home, have coffee, and breakfast while I sit down to get my day started.

I’ll check my Slack and my email to get caught up on what’s going on today. Check my calendar, make sure I'm ready for all of my meetings, and set goals for the day. 

I'll start to work on different projects or different tasks that will help me achieve those goals for either the day or the week. If I have time in the day, I'll usually try to join my husband on their lunch walk, if I can…just to get a little bit of fresh air. Then I’ll do an evening walk with my dog—that's kind of like my book end to my work day. 

That's one thing that I actually really recommend for folks who are maybe new to the remote world. Carve out time to have those walks because it's so easy just to stay home and not go outside and not get that exercise. By working it into your schedule and working it into your day, I think that's a really great way to make time for it.‍

How do you stay connected with your colleagues?

Crystal: Remote work started during COVID for me, similar to the majority of folks out there. During COVID, I ended up moving up to Portland, Oregon. So now I am fully remote…indefinitely. Not seeing my colleagues day in and day out has definitely been the biggest drawback of being remote. It can also be tough being in a different city and a different state than where a lot of my colleagues are.

One thing that keeps us together is having fun conversations, whether it be on Slack or making time to hop on a Zoom, and have some face time with folks. I know that there's always that narrative of Zoom fatigue, which I totally understand and I totally feel. But I do think there's value in also making time to connect with your colleagues in that way. If you're comfortable with it, follow each other on Instagram! Following social channels creates connection outside of work, and I think it's another great way to foster a relationship.

Let’s talk about virtual meetings.  What are your best practices and rules of thumb to effective Zoom meetings?

Crystal: I usually start by setting an agenda and putting it in the calendar invite when I schedule the meeting at the outset. That way, folks understand what the meeting is going to be about and what we're going to cover and creates a bit more structure to the meeting. 

I kick things off by reviewing that agenda and always make sure to keep an eye on time. It’s really easy, either remote or in person, to run over your meetings. But then it creates a domino effect because then you're running late to your next meeting and then the next meeting. Keeping a close eye on time and respecting everybody else's time is great policy.

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As someone who has a lot of meetings with Crystal, I can personally attest to how well she runs a call! Qualified's product launches would not be the same without the incredible effort Crystal puts into them. Thank you for everything you do, Crystal!