Hey, I’m Peter Benei. I’ve spent the first decade of my career in offices in the advertising industry in London and Budapest. I switched to working remotely in 2014. At that time, working remotely was not as trendy or hip as it is today. Now it is everywhere.
I worked as a chief marketing officer for many startups and launched my consultancy, Anywhere Consulting. Currently, I am helping leaders to develop the necessary skills for the new, changing future of work environments. I am an advocate, mentor, consultant, and coach for remote leaders.
Current Location?
Usually, I am in various locations around Italy.
Where can we follow you?
Tell us a little bit about your background & how you got started with remote work?
In 2014, I was an ad executive in London, and more and more of my friends started to quit the 9-5 and moved to South East Asia to work for themselves as creatives.
All they had was their laptop and a few clients. I realized I didn’t need to be in London to be able to sustain a creative career – so at first, I moved back to my hometown Budapest and started creative freelancing online. I quickly became CMO for startup companies remotely; the rest is remote work history for me.
Take us through your typical weekday?
That is the beauty of remote work – there is no typical workday. Primarily if you work for yourself and not for others. But in general, I keep a steady routine to organize my work. I usually work from 11 am to 8 pm as most of my clients are from the US and are based in Italy.
I write content, attend my social channels, and do emails and quick meetings before 1 pm. I keep deep creative work for the afternoon. Key account management meetings happen between 4 pm and 8 pm. I want to save as few meetings as possible and automate most workflows.
Aside: Learn more tips on how to work from home like a boss.
What’s your workspace setup like?
80% of the time, I use my iPad Pro for work. I like to walk a lot, and I love working from the outside, so that you can find me most of the time at an Italian trattoria on a piazza. When I need quiet and focus, I have a small desk at home with a 2nd monitor and a backup Macbook Pro to work on for special creative building phases.
What apps, gadgets, or tools can’t you live without?
My iPad Pro. My iPhone is not because I love my phone, but sometimes it is the internet source for me when WiFi is unavailable.
It’s good to have a backup Macbook as well. I keep a very minimalistic approach with apps – I only use 3rd party apps if necessary; otherwise, I keep everything within my Mac ecosystem.
The only 3rd party apps that I use: are Descript for podcasting, Zoom for meetings (although I would be super happy to use only Facetime, clients prefer Zoom), Buffer for social media, and some in-browser SaaS systems for tasks.
Aside: Find out more about common remote tools and gears used by remote workers.
How do you stay focused on your tasks?
I say NO to 95% of tasks I request or come across. I keep my schedule minimal, focused, and I only work on things that impact my business. I don’t use a project management tool or a to-do list to organize my tasks. Usually, my calendar is enough to keep my schedule.
How do you keep track of what you need to prioritise?
As said above, I keep it minimal. My main priorities are simple: I work only with a selected number of clients on high-priced services with a sharp focus on what needs to be done.
In my marketing, I focus on only four channels: my newsletter, my podcast, my LinkedIn content, and my website. Nothing else matters to me; I usually don’t even open other channels to keep my focus.
How do you recharge or take a break?
In terms of work hours, I don’t work that many – I work smart, focused, and only do what is meaningful. So I don’t drain my batteries too much because what I do is my passion.
However, if I am not working, I focus on my wife, food & travel (I live in Italy, so it’s hard to say no to great food and unique places), and I also have an old dog I rescued from a shelter.
Advice for someone who is looking to switch to a remote job?
Master one skill that is sought after and you enjoy doing it. Master another one to be unique on the market. Never fall into pricing negotiations – always retain a high price for your services, as it gives you flexibility. Focus on a problem that you solve for your customers.
Aside: Learn the skills required to land a remote job
What working remotely really means to you?
Flexibility. I can live wherever I want. I can work whenever I want. It is the ultimate freedom; I would not give it up for anything.
How should one go about finding and getting a remote job?
Most people should skip low-class freelance sites like UpWork and Fiverr. Do a couple of gigs there; first, it gives you street cred and some experience. But never stay there – level up for a real, full-time job.
I would go for full-time remote work, hands down, and then focus on a side hustle. Once you have good enough skin in the game, your side hustle will substitute for your full-time income.
Also, if you have an in-office non-remote job, remote work can be your first side hustle. No need to risk anything, do it for a while as a side gig, grow into it and make the leap of faith when it is less risky in terms of money and income.
Aside: Learn how to find a remote job?
What qualities would you recommend are a must-have for a person seeking a remote job?
Remote work gives you flexibility. That is the ultimate endgame there. If you are not open-minded and flexible and value a safe paycheck and a community of in-person co-workers more, then remote work is not for you.
What is the most challenging aspect of working from home?
Isolation, by far, is the most common threat. You must be proactive with your time and schedule: go out and meet other remote workers, expats, nomads, whatever you fancy.
Aside: Learn how to avoid burnout while working remotely.
What, according to you, are the pros and cons of remote work?
If you are flexible and open-minded, and you are also a master of 1-2 skills, I wouldn’t say that there are any cons to remote work.
Pros are easy: live wherever you want, work whenever you want. It sounds common sense, but if you think about it: in most cases, you don’t have this kind of flexibility in your life. Even if you work full-time in a steady schedule remotely, you can ignore your commute and be amazingly more flexible than anyone working in an office tied to a desk.
Want to work remotely like Peter? We recommend reviewing the list of top remote companies allowing permanent work from home.
Are you searching for a remote job and are trying to figure out where to look. DailyRemote has the latest remote jobs in various categories, such as software development, marketing, virtual assistant jobs, etc. Also, connect with like-minded remote job seekers in our LinkedIn remote community.
