Over the past 19 months, technologists everywhere perfected the art of working from home. And although companies have begun reintroducing their workforces to the office, a significant percentage of technologists will continue to work remotely full-time. Which remote jobs were most in-demand in 2021?

For an answer, we can turn to Emsi Burning Glass, which collects and analyzes millions of job postings from across the across the country. Based on that dataset, the top remote tech jobs for the past 11 months include:

For those interested in becoming software developers or engineers, and who want to do their jobs full-time from their couch, this list no doubt comes as good news. However, employers are mainly interested in the types of remote developers and engineers who not only have the technical skills and experience to get things done, but who have the “soft skills” necessary to effectively communicate and collaborate without meeting in-person. (And keep in mind: at some of the largest tech companies, those with the right mix of skills and experience can earn quite a bit in compensation.) 

Any developer or engineer knows that the path to technical proficiency includes reading and writing lots of code, getting better at problem-solving, and continually learning new technologies and stacks. For remote workers, though, it’s also important to boost how you interact with people. Here are some handy tips we’ve run before—and remember, these work whether you’re interacting in-person or virtually:

• Carve out time to listen to your colleagues and team members. Their concerns are valid. 
• If your company offers soft skills evaluation and training (and many do), make sure you take it. 
• Keep your feedback polite and constructive, no matter the circumstances.  
• Don’t just give feedback. Encourage your colleagues and manager to share how you’re doing as often as possible.  
• Rely on your mentor and any informal advisors to help you with your people skills. 
• If you’re given the opportunity to shape your performance goals and evaluation, ask that your soft skills be evaluated on a regular basis. Your manager will approve of your proactiveness (and your company may have such criteria in place already). 

No matter what tech role you actually land in, soft skills can help elevate your career. Keep that in mind as you’re coding from the couch.