Slack has emerged as a crucial resource for teams working remotely, enabling continuous connection and effortless collaboration. A feature I especially appreciate is the option to mark my status as “Away”. In this piece, I’ll guide you on how to change your status to Away on Slack, offering some personal advice and strategies throughout.
Step 1: Access your profile
To set your status to Away in Slack, start by clicking on your profile picture at the top right corner of the Slack interface. This will open a drop-down menu with various options.
Step 2: Select “Set a status”
Next, select “Set a status” from the drop-down menu. This will open a dialog box where you can customize your status.
Step 3: Choose “Away” as your status
In the dialog box, you will see an option to set your status. Select “Away” from the available options. You can also choose to add a status message if you want to provide more information about why you’re away.
Personally, I find it helpful to include a brief message indicating when I’ll be back or what I’m currently working on. This helps my teammates know when to expect a response or understand that I might not be available immediately.
Step 4: Set the duration
Slack allows you to set the duration of your away status. By default, it is set to “Automatic” which means Slack will infer when you are away based on your activity.
However, if you know that you’ll be away for a specific duration, you can select “Custom” and specify the exact start and end time. This can be especially useful if you’re taking a longer break or have a scheduled meeting.
Step 5: Save your settings
Once you have customized your away status, click on the “Save” button to apply the changes. Your status will now be set to Away, and your teammates will be able to see it.
It’s worth noting that Slack also provides a keyboard shortcut to quickly toggle your status between active and away. By pressing Cmd + Shift + Y on Mac or Ctrl + Shift + Y on Windows, you can easily switch your status without navigating through the profile menu.
Conclusion
Setting your status to Away in Slack is a simple yet powerful way to communicate your availability to your teammates. By following the steps outlined in this article, you can ensure that your colleagues are aware of your availability and can adjust their expectations accordingly.
Remember to customize your away message and duration to provide additional context to your teammates. Effective communication is key when working remotely, and Slack’s away status feature is a valuable tool in achieving that.
