If you’ve ever felt disconnected or invisible while working from home, you’re not imagining it. The challenges of building work relationships remotely are real, and they can quietly chip away at your energy, creativity and sense of belonging. Without "watercooler" chats or hallway nods, it’s easy to feel like collaboration is all task and no trust.

However, strong connections do not require a shared office. With intention and a few simple habits, you can strengthen your remote work interactions and feel genuinely connected.

This week, guest writer Beth Rush returns with another insightful article for Calmer, sharing 12 key steps to building stronger relationships in a remote world.

12 Steps to maintain positive relationships when working remotely

1. Start With Consistency and Clarity

Remote teams need structure to thrive, and that starts with predictable communication. Give your team a foundation to lean on by building consistent rhythms into your workflow, such as morning check-ins, end-of-week recaps or fixed status updates. Clear routines take the guesswork out of collaboration, reduce friction and help everyone to feel in the loop.

The reality is that consistency builds trust over time. If people know they can expect to hear from you regularly, they won’t worry when you’re briefly offline. Clarity is just as important — say what you need, offer timelines and ultimately, avoid ambiguity.

2. Overcommunicate

There are no visual cues for you to rely on in a remote setting, so it’s smart to lean into repetition and explanation:

Repeat your main points and spell out expectations
Check for understanding instead of assuming it happened
At the same time, watch your volume — more messages don’t always mean better communication.

Aim for thoughtful, purposeful check-ins instead of reactive chatter. When in doubt, summarise your key points and invite questions to ensure that those you are communicating with are on the same page as you. Remote relationships strengthen when you show that you care about being understood, not just heard.

3. Rethink Virtual Social Time

You don’t need another cringey Zoom happy hour — you need space to connect outside of task lists and deadlines. Remote teams flourish when there’s room for unstructured conversation and shared humanity.

Instead of formal “fun” events, consider casual coworking hours, open virtual rooms for drop-in chats, or even optional themed hangouts tied to hobbies or holidays. The key is to keep things low-pressure, organic, authentic and opt-in-friendly.

Companies like Nike use worker engagement initiatives to improve productivity and decrease absenteeism; this works well because their staff feel seen and valued.

4. Choose the Whole Person Over a Job Title

When you only see roles or deliverables, it’s easy to flatten relationships into transactions. One way to maintain these when working remotely is by intentionally showing your human side. Avoid venting your life story, but instead share little things — family events, new puppies or adventures!

Micro-stories help others connect beyond tasks, fostering reciprocity and a web of shared experiences that make your team feel like humans, not strangers.

5. Use the Right Tools for Casual Connection

Your tech stack can make or break your team culture. Tools that support casual conversation or lighthearted interactions help fill the gap of in-person office banter. Chat platforms with emoji reactions, tools for virtual recognition, digital “watercooler” spaces, and instant messages support connection and stave off burnout.

Never underestimate the power of a silly meme, a non-work chat thread or a “shoutout” system for highlighting wins. These tools may seem insignificant, but over time they create consistent opportunities for emotional connection, humour and support — all of which resonate in remote environments with limited face time.

6. Prioritise Psychological Safety

People struggle to connect meaningfully when they’re afraid to speak up. If your team avoids conflict, hesitates to offer feedback or defaults to silence, it’s time to cultivate psychological safety. This means making it ok to say “I don’t know,” to admit mistakes, and to push back without fear, fostering a blameless culture that encourages learning.

Start by modelling this yourself — show vulnerability, ask for input, and invite differing opinions. Celebrate learning moments rather than only polished results. When your team feels safe, they’re more likely to engage, collaborate, and build honest and lasting relationships.

7. Protect and Respect Boundaries

A healthy remote relationship includes respecting people’s time and energy. That means no response-time guilt-tripping, or nonemergency midnight messages. Tools like delay-send, shared calendars or clearly posted work hours can help to clarify expectations.

Respecting boundaries doesn’t make you less available, it makes your interactions more intentional. When people feel their time and space are honoured, this naturally fosters a greater sense of trust.

8. Create Supportive Pairing Systems

Remote onboarding is often a lonely and siloed collaboration, and a buddy system is a simple, effective way to combat both. Pair new employees with more experienced team members for weekly check-ins, casual support and further training. You can also create peer support networks so that teammates can connect with and understand one another.

Micro-connections help people feel seen and supported beyond their immediate managers or departments. They also make space for shared growth, knowledge, and most crucially, human connection.

9. Write Warm Texts

Tone is easy to misinterpret in a digital world. For example, a flat “noted” reflects annoyance. A “thanks for flagging that — appreciate it!” lands much softer. Create warm messages, without feeling the need to overuse emojis or exclamation points — a sprinkle goes a long way.

Match your tone to the relationship; choose kindness and clarity when communicating with a new teammate. Informal shorthand works well if you’ve known each other for a while.

10. Handle Conflict Promptly and Kindly

Avoiding conflict won’t protect your relationships — in fact, it can quietly erode them. If something feels off or a miscommunication lingers, it is best to address it sooner rather than later. Try not to jump to conclusions or accusations; instead, use clear, direct language and de-escalate conflict with “I” statements instead of assigning blame with “you” phrasing.

Identify what you notice, how it impacts you and what you’d like to resolve. In a remote working setting, aim to call rather than text when possible to help preserve tone. When you navigate conflict with care and honesty, you show people that they and their output matter. This is key to building resilient, high-trust remote connections.

11. Make Gratitude a Habit

In remote work, people often finish big projects without even a thumbs-up. Make praise a regular part of your communication flow; why not learn from Campbell Soup CEO Doug Conant, who wrote 30,000 thank-you notes by hand during his tenure — thank people for their effort, not just their results.

Recognise collaboration wins and behind-the-scenes work. This could be through sending a simple message in a public channel, a personal email, or a regular roundup of team highlights. When people feel seen and valued, they’re more likely to stay engaged and connected.

12. Be There When It Really Counts

Sometimes, all the culture-building in the world can’t prevent burnout or crisis. When someone is struggling, be aware of the signs and support them. Use compassionate check-ins and offer flexibility where possible.

If someone requires help beyond what you can provide, share resources for mental health support if people need it immediately. Be a source of care during a difficult time, and show your team that connection runs deeper than convenience.

Keep your remote connections real

Strong remote teams not only help you work better, they help you feel better. The sense of belonging, support and mutual trust you build can ease stress, prevent burnout and remind you that you’re not alone behind the screen.

While the challenges of building work relationships remotely are real, they’re not insurmountable.