Abhishek Kumar, Correspondent.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Work from Home.
Due to COVID-19 crisis most of the companies have already implemented remote work policies for many of their employees.
Let’s be real, no matter where you’re working from, you’re still doing just that: working.
When you’re at work, nothing sounds more amazing than a toasty day indoors with your favorite blanket. When you’re at home, you reminisce about making jokes with your co-workers and wonder if the coffee machine made good coffee that day.
Let’s take a look at some of the classic benefits and disadvantages of Remote Working:
Advantages of Working from Home
1. Flexible schedul- You can take breaks at any moment, feel no rush to hang up on your family members when they call, and eat lunch at any weird time you want.
2. Custom environment- Setup your noise level just the way you want it — somewhere between insanely quiet to being at the front row of a Flosstradamus show.
3. Cozy clothes- You get to wear those sweatpants from college with the letters peeling off, or the leggings your friends don’t know you own.
4. It’s easier to make calls- You won’t have to scramble to find a conference room or deal with a particularly chatty co-worker. (Granted, kids and pets at home can make this tough for some remote employees.)
5. No office distractions- Avoid co-workers debating the merits of cryptocurrency, sirens wailing outside your window, the AC kicking in as you hide your icicle tears.
6. Zero commuting- From bed to … bed? Hey I’m not judging, it’s nice.
7. Save money- Lunch is expensive if you work in a city or downtown. At home, you can save money and can have tasty homemade foods.
8. Forget crowds and traffic- No stuffing yourself into a rickety transportation tube, having people scuff your new shoes, or walking behind agonizingly slow people who apparently don’t know what a straight line is.
9. More time with loved ones- Take care of a sick significant other at home, be ready for your kids earlier in the day, get some extra snuggles in with your doggo, or simply get some quiet time to yourself.
Disadvantages of Working from Home
1. Willpower- Gotta get jamming on this new project, but Netflix just dropped a new web series .
2. Difficulty sticking to a routine- The order you do things at work is almost never the order you do things at home. It can be tough to mirror your schedule and processes once outside the office.
3. Missing important calls or pings. Oops, my phone was on, do not disturb and I missed a meeting! Or my boss slacked me and asked to prioritize something else and now it’s 4:45pm …
4. Power naps- This could arguably be an advantage unless it accidentally lasts 45 minutes after your delivered double entree Thai lunch.
5. Boredom- Those office convos? Kinda missing Susan’s cat stories, eh? How long can you go without seeing another living human being?
6. Working slowly- Sometimes the office has energy. Sometimes your home does not.
7. No second monitor- How did I ever work without two giant screens looming above me??? All 74 of my tabs are essential!
8. Iffy WiFi- At home or in a cafe, when the wifi starts to spaz and you switch locations a couple of times but honestly spend more time parking and ordering a 6-shot mint mojito coffee with coconut milk and 16 grains of sugar than doing work.
9. Waiting for an answer- You need to ask a super quick question, but it’ll impact how you do something for the next hour or even the rest of the day. And there’s no response.
