Slack has been around for over a decade and is the primary way many professionals communicate with team members at work; however, it’s still easy to let it fade into the background without ever truly exploring its capabilities. Slack goes far beyond simple messaging, allowing you to conduct meetings, run simple commands, take quick notes, and more, all right from the app. Here, we’ve compiled eight simple productivity tips to help you and your coworkers get more out of the messaging platform.
1. Set Your Status
Just because you’re working doesn’t mean you’re always available to answer messages. You might be at lunch, in a long meeting, or working offsite for the day. Accordingly, updating your status (and incorporating a relevant emoji that conveys what you’re doing at a glance) keeps your coworkers in the loop. Simply click on your profile picture toward the bottom left of the app and fill out the Update Your Status field.
Importantly, you shouldn’t overuse this feature. For example, if you work from home most days, setting your status to ‘working remotely’ doesn’t communicate much useful information.