For remote workers, the internet is a source of income. They need the internet, from searching for gigs to attending work meetings, sending files, responding to emails, and communicating with their loved ones.
Now, imagine you cannot do all these because you live in an area with no internet. This automatically means that your source of income is stripped away, and you miss the opportunity of sharing special moments with friends and family living far away.
…Sadly, this is the reality of many remote workers who live in rural areas.
Over the last decade, rural Americans have made massive efforts to bridge technological gaps by adopting digital technology. However, despite these efforts, experts say that rural residents are the least likely Americans to have access to the high-speed Internet needed in modern society for work, education, and health care.
What does high-speed internet mean?
When I think of high-speed internet, I think of download speeds of at least 25 megabits per second or Mbps.
High-Speed Internet is required for a lot of reasons. For a start, remote workers need high-speed internet to communicate with their employers and teammates via chat apps, and children need high-speed internet to engage in remote learning.
Digital technologies used in agriculture to increase crop and animal yields, improve distribution, and reduce input costs require high-speed internet connection.
Also, access to the internet directly influences the economic growth and health of any city, town, or country. This means that places with high-speed internet are much more desirable to live in than places with crappy internet.
This brings us to the question, how can remote workers living in the most rural areas ensure they stay connected with the rest of the world? Well, let’s explore these suggestions listed below?
Maps Telling Rural Residents where to find high-speed Internet
In the 21st century, even in the most rural locations, there are areas with better internet services. This may be because these areas are closer to cell towers or more populated than other areas.
Therefore internet service companies take advantage of the large population to set up bases there. Remote workers living in rural areas need to get their hands on maps that accurately identify areas with high-speed internet.
Such a map would also help these remote workers identify broadband dead areas. With such information, these workers would successfully avoid living in areas with no internet.
Time Management Apps
Even when remote workers succeed in finding areas with broadband, there is still a possibility of the internet becoming slow during certain hours of the day—Internet rush hour. Between 7 and 11 pm, when most Internet users are online at the same time, the internet can become annoyingly slow.
To avoid dealing with internet rush hour, especially when you are deep into a task, you need to manage your time accurately. This is where time management apps come in.
A time management app helps you better prioritize your time with to-do lists, time trackers, memos, and calendars.
First, you need to identify the internet rush hour in your area. It could be early evenings when people are just returning from work or afternoons during lunch breaks.
Once you have identified the internet rush hour in your area, you can now use your time management app to schedule tasks around the hours when the internet is fast. By doing so, you get work done before the internet is packed with so many users and then get some rest or unwind during the rush hours.
Get Nomad internet
Nomad Internet is an LTE internet option specifically made for travelers(for your road trips and Rving) and people who live in rural areas. From Florida to California, Nomad Internet is available in all of America.
Nomad Internet provides American rural residents with high-speed internet through major cell towers(AT&T and T-Mobile towers) close by. The benefit of this is that, as a Nomad internet user, you are sure to get internet anywhere there is cell service.
Nomad internet offers two major device options. The fully portable travel router has an inbuilt battery (4-5hours battery life) and can be used on the road, at home, or in the office.
The second device option is the Wi-Fi router. It is a stationary router that requires being plugged into a power supply and has extra antennas to achieve faster speeds.
Both device types each have membership plans represented by different colors. Each color represents one of the major cellular carrier networks, and each membership plan differs in-network coverage.
With Nomad internet, you have the option of knowing if a plan would work in your area even before purchasing it. To do this, simply visit the website, and view each plans’ coverage in your location or visit the Help Me Choose page.
You can get both device types for the best experience with Nomad internet. The Wi-Fi router to stay connected when in your home or RV and the travel router for when you go out to the beach or for a walk around your neighborhood.
With millions of adult rural residents adopting the work-from-home culture, there is a greater need for broadband internet in rural areas.
Remote workers living in rural areas can achieve faster internet speeds by identifying areas with broadband, using antennas to boost internet signals, and subscribing to good internet companies.
I recently read this article on rural internet solutions and I have to say, I was extremely disappointed. The author made it sound like there are easy solutions to internet connectivity problems in rural areas, but as someone who lives in the countryside, I can tell you that it’s not that simple. The author didn’t address the lack of infrastructure in rural areas, which is a major hindrance to getting reliable internet. The article also failed to provide any practical advice on how to help remote workers who are struggling with little to no internet. I was hoping to find some useful tips, but all I got was a bunch of vague suggestions that are not realistic for people living in remote areas. Overall, I found this article to be a waste of my time and I would not recommend it to anyone looking for real solutions to rural internet connectivity problems.
These are interesting ideas on how to get internet in remote areas! It’s not a secret that remote workers totally rely on internet while working. So, as you stated in the article, the internet is a source of income. I’d like to believe that in the next several years the situation will improve and there will be more companies like nomad who are happy to provide the connection to these areas.
The digital divide, where some communities have limited or no access to reliable internet, greatly affects the ability of remote workers to effectively do their jobs. For those in rural areas, this lack of access can be especially challenging and limit economic opportunities. It is crucial for governments, private companies, and communities to work together to provide solutions for rural internet access. This can include investing in infrastructure and technology, partnering with local organizations, and providing education and training programs to help individuals and businesses thrive in a digital economy. Without access to reliable internet, remote workers and rural communities will continue to face obstacles in achieving their full potential. Addressing the digital divide and promoting equal access to technology is essential for creating a more equitable and inclusive society.