Community Chat

[chrystaltree]

I worked from home for 6years before I retired last year and I loved it.  I never felt isolated and I never missed being in the office setting.  I actually never sat around in pjs or rolled out bed 5 minutes before my start time.  I had a friend who had worked from a home office for 10 years and he gave me some tips.  He told me that I should get up, get dressed for work and keep a regular scheduled.  I needed to be in a work mindset.  So, I was up at 6am, dressed and made up and fireg up my laptop everyday at precisly 8am.  He also told me to take my hour long lunch everyday but I never really did that.  I had surprise Zoom calls throughout the day so I had to look professional....from the waist up anyway.  I preferred working remotely because I could concentragte better.  My work was detailled and I had to do a lot of medical research.  I liked the peace and quiet of home.  There's so much noise and distractions in the offce.  And of course,there was that 3 hour daily commute that was a killer for me with my knee arthritis.  1 hour in the morning and usually two hours to get home but sometimes longer.  I felt happy and blessed when my boss said he was sending all the medical coders and analysts home to work because he needed the space to hire new emplpyees.  And then Covid struck and everything changed.  Everyone in our Division was given a laptop and sent home to work.  It worked out so well that they made most jobs in the Division remote.  Although there were indeed people who didn't care for remote work.  They wanted to back to the office. I think some people are social beings. They need the swirl of other people around them.  As for infants and toddlers.  In my work, no one had the time to care for children and still get their jobs done.  How do work a report mandated by the State and take care of a two year old?  The women who had kids, took them to the sitter or daycare just as they did when they worked in the office.  During Covid; me, my nephew, his wife were all working from home and my little niece was going to school online.  It was crazy!  Many jobs went with a 50-50 model here because that's what most workers want.  My niece even negotiated that on her new job.  They wanted her for the position but she insisted on 3 days in her home office and 2 days in the office. The re-wrote the job description to relfect that.            

[CrazyKittyLvr2]

Although I never worked from home (would have loved it) DD did for a few months, March to July of 2020.  She loved it. No  2hrs. hours daily of commuting. Money saved on gas and lunches etc.

She was upstairs in her room by her 8:30 start time. I didn't see her again until noon when she came down for lunch. From 1pm to 5 pm she was upstairs working. At little after 5 she was "home" from work instead of well after 6, no traffic.

She loved it, no downside. It was great for me too, the phone had to be available in case her boss called. I hate talking on the phone so I had an excuse not to chat, her boss might call.

[KathyM23]

I would not want to work at home.  I like getting dressed in good clothes and going to the office and being around the people I work with and the clients and others coming into the office.  Going out to lunch with co-workers.  I mentioned in anorher post after meeting best friends at work.

It seems in jobs I have had interaction with other employees/departments not over skype but in person was necessary to get the job done.

The long commute I can do without.  When I was young and first working I had an hour long commute each way for my first two jobs sometimes in terrible weather and at the time I did not mind that.  It was just part of the excitement of working downtown in the city.

If I were working full time today as I age for me the perfect thing would be going into the office 3 days and working at home 2 days.

I also know myself and I know I would have a hard time keeping to a workday schedule being at home.  I would want to sleep in, work off and on during the day putting in my time all through the day and evening and late into the night.  Not like 8 hours straight and would therefore not be available to others workers when needed.  I am not very disciplined when left to my own devices I guess.

In one of my most recent part time jobs one my duties was at home using software that was put on my home computer.  It had to be done by Thursdays weekly and I had to scramble to met the deadline as I described my at home work habits above.  I would put it off a day and do 2 days work in one day, etc.   The input from some of my co-workers was not clear and after a frustrating time trying to figure what they meant I had to question them and it would have just been easier to just go directly to them at work and not spend a lot of time trying to decipher what they meant.

The lack of physical movement by working at home is definitely true.  At work I was up and down constantly, walking from office to office, up stairs to other departments, up to the copy room and over to the fax machine and so on.

[sugar plum]

@QVCkitty1 and @On It

I'm also an introvert. Don't miss the noise, and drama. Exhausting for me.

An introvert friend of mine calls some overt extroverts "vampires". They suck the air out of a room. LOL

[Josmad]

I loved working at home. My commute was only about 20 min, but, it was so nice not having to drive when it was snowing.  I would take the dogs for a walk during my breaks and lunches so I actually got more exercise when working at home. 

[MamaWick]

I'm sorry, but you cannot work from home and give 100% to your job if you use it to save money on daycare.  Those of you who say you can, then you are shortchanging your employer.  Of course family comes first, but working at home while watching your children do not mix.  

For decades, I worked at home as a certified medical transcriptionist.  Fortunately, I didn't have small children also needing my attention. 

[debfau]

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@On It wrote:

I am an introvert. Being around others is a tiring distraction. Working from home would be ideal for me. I cannot grasp the concept since it is so opposite for me, but extroverts thrive in the company of others and do not enjoy isolation. It would be nice if companies could give workers options.

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At my office we have 3 choices: 1. work in office full-time; 2. work remotely full-time; or 3. come to office 3 days a week which is what I do along with several of my co-workers (I am more of a social butterfly and can't do full-time remote).

[sueinsf]

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@nascarfan wrote:

I believe the success in working from home rests on the individual. First of all, I get up, get dressed in clean clothes, put on make up, style my hair, and begin my workday. I have between 3 - 5 virtual meetings with colleagues every day.  I don't feel isolated because I "see" my colleagues regularly.

I don't miss the commute.  As a matter of fact I am no longer "dragging" into the office on Friday, after a long work week. I have more energy because those 10 hours dedicated to just commuting to and from the office are gone. 

At the start of teleworking I wasn't a fan, but once I got used to the technology and realized the benefits, I am so appreciative of this opportunity my company provides to their employees. 

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I would agree.  I'm not an introvert and I love working from home.  However, I don't put on makeup unless I have a meeting (either in person or zoom) and I dress in casual clothes at home (more professional attire if I have meetings or events).  I actually workout more because I have an exercise bike at home that I use regularly and I also go for regular walks, weather permitting.  I also do some resistence training at home (although not as often as I would like).  If I commuted, I would likely be too tired to workout (or use that excuse) or would have to drag myself to the gym after work.

The only negative for me is not having the socialization of the office, but most of the people I would socialize with are also remote now and I chat with them frequently by phone or facetime (occasionally meet for coffee or a glass of wine).  However, I do get out periodically to see clients as well so I don't feel completely tethered to my desk.

So overall it's a win for me.  I was working from home 4 days/week prior to COVID but I was out and about more.  Haven't worked fulltime in the office for some time and I'm fine with that.

[feline groovy]

For us introverts, it's fantastic.  ;-) 

Bonus:  being with our pets.  8-)

Covid isolation - also easier for introverts.

[Trailrun23]

Being able to work from home works best if you set a schedule and keep work hours as if you are going to an office. DD slopped around for a few weeks in her pjs, doing paperwork at 2 am, etc,  and then figured out she needed the structure and organization she was used to in working downtown in an office. Now she gets up at the same time each morning, gets dressed in casual clothes but still presentable, and begins the workday, takes an hour for lunch, then ends the workday the same as she did before. She said she likes it much better now and has the option of going back to the office, but she prefers working from home for now.