Do you struggle to balance the barrage of meetings and the constant flow of Slack messages with deep work? Is your workload overwhelming you and you can’t seem to find time to do meaningful work? Implementing at least some elements of asynchronous work into your work-life can help you out. In the previous article, we discussed what is Async work and its benefits.  Today, we're gonna explore how you can incorporate async work into your working life and give you some examples. By the end, you should have fewer meetings, more time, and also inspiration on how to think Asynchronously.

Though first a small disclaimer. I am gonna propose just a few ways to do certain tasks. Then you should modify it. Take into account your team, structure, organization, goals, and work preferences.

There is no “one size fits all” when it comes to working or processes. So take this as an inspiration.

Our main goal with async processes is:

Focus on documentation and reduce distraction to enable deep work.

This article is from a series of articles called “Async and remote work for skeptics”:

• Obstacles in Remote Work: Adopt Async Work and unlock 5 enormous benefits
• How to actually practice Async work effectively and never dread remote meetings nightmare (This one)
• Post about how to run remote meetings (TBD)
• Post about Deep work (TBD)

Usage of tools for better async work

Let’s talk about tools. The way you use them is important and it can make or break your efforts towards more async work and communication. So let’s discuss some tips that you can incorporate when using them as well as some tool examples. Though you can use different tools, even the ones you already have. Eg. if you use Microsoft Teams then… I’m sorry for you… though use that if you must :).

Screen recorders like Loom

Loom is a screen, audio, and video recorder that allows you to easily create and share your recordings internally and externally. Works both on Windows and Mac as well as on the Web.

• Record walkthroughs and explanations, information sharing,
• Share with internal and external people
• Embed in other tools

Wiki, docs, design, and flowcharts

We use lots of tools in our jobs. But ideally, your team or organization has a place that serves as a source of truth, a public wiki of sorts. A place where you store documents, documentation, designs, flow charts, decisions, etc. It doesn't matter what you use. It could be Notion, Google, Miro, Confluence, and many others.

But for any tool you use, make sure to document your work there properly.

Here are some tips on how you can improve documentation with a few tricks. eg.

• Have One source of truth and a place where everyone can find everything (even if it’s just a link to another tool)
• Embed Audio or Video with a walkthrough or explanation.
• Create an understandable structure
• Document in a way that is self-explanatory.
• Cross-link to other relevant content in other tools

This might deserve a separate article that would talk about documentation, so let me know if you’re interested.

Messaging tools like Slack

Many communication tools nowadays have very similar features to each other. Or there is mostly some way to achieve similar results.

In this example, I will use Slack. Though there are ways to achieve the same results in other tools as well, even if through the use of an external tool, like the aforementioned Loom.

• Update your status and pause notifications during your deep work
  • Automate it. Eg. by having a Notification schedule.
• Automate recurring messages with Slack Workflows
• Create one-off Slack videos that won’t need to be shared with other people later on. Ideal for 1-on-1 messages. Though if you have paid Loom, use it instead.
  Use it when:
  • Ask questions or create quick explanations
  • Show what you mean (Show, don't tell)

Calendar

No matter what calendar you use, make sure to set it up in a way that protects your time. It’s way easier with Google Calendar but you can manage with other ones, too.

• Block off your Focus time in the Calendar
• Block off the times you don’t work

In a future post, I will go into more detail about Calendar setup, usage, what to do when you receive a meeting and how to run meetings.

How to make some tasks asynchronously

Let’s talk about specific examples of how to make some tasks more asynchronous.

Information sharing and documentation

Presentation of results

You did some amazing work and now you need to present the results. Maybe you did some market research, user research, product analysis, etc. Here’s how to make it more async.

Record yourself presenting the results. Then instead of holding a meeting, share the recording.

On top of that, document the results and your findings, even your process. And make it more engaging with small video snippets.

People can ask you questions once they look at the documentation. You can even hold a follow-up or clarification meeting if necessary. Though you’d still save plenty of time and money (see the section in the previous article on the Cost of meetings).

Walkthroughs

In product organizations, it is common to have to show someone how to do something or explain how something works. This could be a QA walking through a product, a developer explaining a feature, a designer showcasing a new flow, or a product manager explaining the strategy and release.
These tasks tend to repeat themselves. So someone may end up having to explain the same information many times to multiple people.
To avoid this, it is a good idea to record this information once and add it to your Source of Truth. Then anyone can access it as needed at any time.

And if someone asks about it later, you can simply refer them to the recorded material.
You just saved yourself a meeting :).

Documentation, developer tickets, etc.

We talked before about having good documentation and some tips on improving it. So now is the time to use it. For example, when you are creating eg. a JIRA ticket, attach appropriate documentation to it and link to the right documents.

Here's an example from the Design world.

I would link to a specific frame in Figma for a specific JIRA ticket. And then this Figma document contains further explanations with text, sticky notes, other frames (with other states), etc. I could also add a video both into JIRA and Figma. Basically, I'll try to do everything to make sure that the developer working on this Issue/Ticket has everything that he or she needs to complete it.

Work updates, standups, etc.

It's important to keep your team updated on what you're working on, the progress of certain tasks, and if there are any blockers. If you work in an Agile environment, you might have daily standups for this purpose.

Here's an idea to try out:
Keep track of your tasks and update them with the latest status.

This might be difficult for some professions. Or your team might need even more visibility. In that case, you might want to keep your "Standup" ritual, but try to automate it and make it async.
For example, you can have an automated message in Slack where people can post their updates in a thread. They can use text, audio or video for their reply. If you have a blocker, you can even tag the person who can help you with that.

Small questions and answers

Making a request

We’ve all been there. We are working on something new and have a specific problem that we need to solve. It could be a decision, very specific information that’s not (clear) in the documentation, a specific task that needs to be done, and so on. But, the person that can help you might not know the context of what you're working on. Some might be tempted to schedule a meeting. Some might write a long message.

Here’s what I might do in similar situations:
I’d write a message with a one-sentence context of what I’m asking. Then I'd ask specific questions that I’m seeking an answer to or need to get done. Then, attach any relevant documentation and also record a video with more context and explanation.

Responding to people

We've all received messages that ask us to explain something. If it's very simple, we can just reply with a text message. However, if it's more complex and someone else might have the same question in the future, it would be a good idea to record a small walkthrough. Then you can add it to the documentation or source of truth.

As a UX designer, I often encounter unexpected or new issues that need to be addressed. Or maybe parts of the design are not completely clear.
In these cases, I make sure to answer the person. But more importantly, I clarify the issue in an appropriate document to ensure that everyone is on the same page.

Work feedback

As a designer, I often provide feedback on work to other designers, developers, QAs, etc. I find that recordings are an ideal way to deliver small feedback. They are easier and faster to create. They also allow the other person to hear my tone of voice and see my facial expressions, which can help to reduce potential tension or misunderstandings.

However, other methods may be more appropriate for larger feedback and depending on the desired outcome. See the section on Sync vs Async - when to do which?

Conclusion

Trying asynchronous work in your work-life can significantly improve your productivity, focus, and overall work satisfaction. By using tools at your disposal effectively, and having a Documentation-focused team you can streamline your communication, reduce the number of meetings, and create a system that allows for deep work and collaboration.
Asynchronous work is not a one-size-fits-all solution, and it's important to find the right balance for yourself and your team. Though I do hope you find some inspiration here.

Let me know what you’ll try out and if you have any other tips.

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