The Critical Importance of Staying Visibly Online
Staying actively online on Slack is crucial for team collaboration and productivity. That little green dot signals to coworkers that you‘re available to chat at any moment. But it‘s easy to accidentally toggle your status to "Away" when you walk away from your computer or switch browser tabs.
Don‘t worry – with the right tools and techniques, you can keep your Slack status green for effective communication. In this comprehensive 2500+ word guide, I‘ll walk you through several methods to make Slack think you‘re always active.
Why Keeping Slack Active Matters
Slack uses your status to indicate when you are actively online or possibly away. This avoids coworkers messaging you unnecessarily when you’re occupied. It’s essential for setting expectations around response times.
I‘ve managed global remote teams for over a decade across big tech companies like Google, Meta, and Microsoft. Through hard-learned experience, I‘ve seen firsthand how confusing online statuses detrimentally impact productivity.
When you unexpectedly toggle to "Away", teammates struggle to discern if you‘re briefly stepping away or signed off for the night. This complicates coordinating time-sensitive deliverables.
Additionally, multiple studies show that employees feel more connected and engaged when their teammates appear actively online. An always-on green dot signals you’re dedicated and attentive.
- 71% of remote workers feel more isolated and disconnected than office-based staff. But visible online activity increases a sense of belonging. [PwC study]
- 87% of employees experience improved productivity when leaders are responsively online on chat platforms like Slack. [Gallup]
As both a leader and IC, keeping your status green pays dividends through more inclusive and collaborative teams.
Current Slack Adoption Trends
The rise of remote and hybrid work has led to exploding Slack usage over the past few years. Adoption skyrocketed further during peak COVID lockdowns.
- Daily active Slack users: from 10+ million in 2019 to over 156 million in 2022 [Statista]
- Companies relying on Slack: from 500K+ in 2020 to over 832K+ currently [Approvals]
- Average weekly minutes in Slack per user: over 120, up 22% since 2019 [Slack]
With increasingly distributed teams, Slack has become the "virtual office" for daily coordination. Ensuring your availability status is crystal clear for teammates is thus essential.
Below I share battle-tested techniques perfected over years keeping my own Slack status seamlessly online.
Method 1: Use the Slack Off Tool
The Slack Off web app is purpose-built to keep your Slack status green 24/7 through automated behind-the-scenes pings:
Step 1: Create an Account
Visit the Slack Off website and click "Try it Out" to register. It‘s completely free to start.
Step 2: Add Your Workspace
Slack Off will ask you to enter a special API integration token to link your workspace. Here‘s how to easily generate this token:
- Go to the Legacy Token Generator on Slack‘s website
- Scroll down and securely enter your workspace name and username
- Click "Re-issue token" to generate a new string of characters
Step 3: Copy and Paste the Token
Copy your new legacy token and paste it into the Slack Off workspace setup page. This safely authenticates the connection through legacy OAuth protocols.
Step 4: Set Yourself as Always Active
Once connected, Slack Off will automatically toggle your status to always remain green. You‘ll continually appear online even when you walk away, switch apps, or lock your computer!
The free version works perfectly, but upgrading to premium allows you to schedule customized active hours by day and time.
For example, you can set Slack Off to toggle you available weekdays 9-5 and unavailable evenings/weekends to match your typical working hours. Coworkers will thus see expected activity rather than oddly perpetual online status.
Method 2: Update Status Manually
You can also manually set yourself to "Active" in Slack‘s desktop app:
- Click your profile icon in the top right
- Select "Set yourself as Active/Away"
- Choose the status you want displayed
Remember to toggle back to "Away" when signing off to avoid confusing teammates about your actual availability. But while working, periodically select "Active" again if stepping away for short offline tasks.
Pro Tip: To avoid micromanaging status toggling, I recommend Slack Off for automated hands-free visibility. Manual changes grow tiresome!
Other Clever Slack Status Hacks
Beyond those two primary methods, developers have devised some ingenious bots and scripts to keep Slack continually active by simulating mouse/keyboard activity:
Auto-Typer Bots
- Windows AutoHotkey scripts
- Mac Automator auto-type routines
- Browser extensions like Chime Typer
- Linux command line tools like PhraseExpress
- Mobile chatbot apps to send recurrent messages
These various auto-typing tools can replay preset strings of text at regular intervals. Slack views this constant string input as continual activity to keep your status green.
Configure them to type nonsense filter words like "activity123 activity123" on loop. Coworkers won‘t see the gibberish since it occurs behind-the-scenes. Very handy for staying visibly online during heads-down focus!
Smart Mouse Movers
One clever manual hack involves looping a mouse movement video on your phone screen. Place an optical mouse sensor on top. The constant motion tricks Slack‘s activity algorithms into showing you as actively typing and clicking.
Although kind of janky, this analog trick works in a pinch if you lack access to auto-typing software tools!
Auto-Clicker Apps
Free auto-clicker programs like MurGee or GT Auto Clicker for Windows simulate mouse clicks and movements at customizable intervals. Install one on your work machine and configure it to keep Slack continually active.
Advanced clickers can even randomize the intervals and locations of clicks to appear more human-like. I suggest toggling off the auto-clicker when actually using your computer to avoid interfering mouse chaos!
Most auto-typers and clickers offer free trials – take them for a spin to see which you like best.
Pro Tip: Schedule "Do Not Disturb" Hours
Even with an always-on green dot, make sure to schedule "Do Not Disturb" hours where you appear online but won‘t receive distracting notifications.
Coworkers will then assume you‘re heads-down on important work rather than being unresponsive. Just remember to toggle DND off again when ready for chatter.
Pro DND Scheduling:
- Set at least 2-3 hours daily for focused work
- Block time on calendars so teammates are aware
- Customize notifications to allow pings from key stakeholders
- Share your typical DND window with your team
- Never schedule all-day DND to remain accessible
With good communication, you can take advantage of uninterrupted flow while still visibility online!
Optimizing Slack Status on Mobile
The concepts are similar for Android and iOS devices. Simply leave the Slack app open and adjust your phone display settings:
iOS Tips
- Turn on Guided Access to keep Slack the only usable app
- Set screen auto-lock to "Never"
- Lower brightness to save battery
- Ensure background app refresh is enabled
- Plug into a charger if needed
Android Recommendations
- Use Pinning to keep Slack as the front app
- Activate developer options to disable battery optimizations
- Adjust notifications to minimize disruptive sounds/vibrations
- Consider installing Insight Timer to prevent idle when reading
With Slack actively running in the foreground, you‘ll glow green on mobile without manual effort!
Final Recommendations for Staying Active on Slack
After years keeping teams connected across timezones, I‘ve picked up some productivity best practices around balancing availability expectations with actual work:
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Use Slack Off for set-it-and-forget-it visibility. Schedule your ideal online hours for each role.
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Manually toggle between Active/Away rather than closing app. This keeps you visibly online during short breaks.
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Auto-clickers simulate activity during heads-down work. Just toggle them off temporarily when chatting.
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Explicitly communicate your typical response times to set expectations. Remind coworkers your quick replies don‘t always reflect immediate availability.
Even for distributed teams across countries, maintaining an always-on available status has proven vital for coordination, trust, and camaraderie. Use a blend of automation tools and manual updates to keep that little green dot shining bright!
Let me know if you have any other favorite Slack hacks for staying perpetually active. I‘m always tweaking my own system in this never-ending quest!
