I’ve been working from home for 3 or 4 years now. Love it. Never want to go back.
But one of the reasons I like it is because I am an antisocial git, and find the trials, tribulations, gossip and politics of my co-workers rather tiresome.
I get FAR more work done.
I can garden or walk the dogs, or sit in the hot tub during my lunch breaks.
Most of my interactions are written - which means I have a wonderful audit trail for requests, queries, info supplied, deadlines, etc.
I get more time to deal with queries efficiently, with less pressure.
The dogs have company all day.
My desk setup is 10x better than it would be in the cramped openplan plague pit of the office (I used to sit next to a grandmother who diligently imported every grandchild’s virus, and then infected me by grabbing my mouse 3x a day)
My desk is bigger - but not very big.
My screen is a 50 inch tv we retired from the front room when we went ultra HD. It is much better than the poxy 2nd screen work offered me.
I don’t have to bother with those awful softphone headphones everyone has to use in the office for phonecalls since they removed from the phones
My desk chair is gorgeous. The office ones did terrible things to my back. This one has up down, seat tilt, back tilt and back up/down, is leather and fit for 24 hr use. I could
live in this chair. We invested in it rather than import one of those awful ones from work, and I tell you, if I ever have to work in an office again, this chair is coming with me!
My lovely ergonomic keyboard and joystick mouse don’t have to be hidden each evening in case ppl borrow them while hotdesking if I am away.
There’s a widget where I can switch between my own computer setup, and my work computer setup at the flick of a switch, and still use the 50 inch screen.
When I stand and stretch and move, I can do proper yoga moves without someone thinking I’ve gone mad.
I have a Nano cube fish tank on my desk. The shrimp have just had babies! I am a grandma!
I am 8 feet from the kettle and 10 feet from the fridge.
No one else messes in or stinks up my loo.
I am home for all workmen, deliveries and the window cleaner.
I have long, chatty, private convos with selected co-workers and my line manager. No eavesdroppers.
I have a far better relationship with everyone, since they no longer irritate me
My hours are far more flexible.
I can watch the feeder being decimated by hoards of ravening birds, and cat visitors failing to catch them and being chased off by my indignant dogs. That never gets old.
No one gets to judge my Weird food anymore.
I save an hour a day commute time, and parking costs and all that hassle.
Meanwhile, back at the office, they are having to cut occupancy from 250 staff in daily residence down to about 50 and make significant spending to introduce one way systems, screens and airlocks. Some windows now open for the first time in living memory! Which means there will be endless daily whinging from the Window Shut I'm Cold people (You know, the ones who want to wear a cotton teeshirt all year round). And most of those who were sent home for Lockdown are
desperate not to have to go back.
I realise I am lucky to have the space to work as I do, but this is
not a big house. It is a small Edwardian terrace, 2 up, 2 down, bath and kitch. We use the space carefully. My desk is a medium one. I was just lucky to have an opportunity to work from home long before the Lockdown Stampede, and have learned/evolved to create an environment that works for me - and produces better quality, more productive work output AND a happier employee as a result.
obviously, this post is not in the slightest bit helpful to those of you being forced back into social contact and work without social distancing. I am sorry. I really feel for you. But I do hope that my post helps those of you stuck at home resenting it and finding it difficult to adjust. If that is your situation, there IS hope. There are lots and lots of ways to make homeworking both pleasurable, comfortable and productive. And less stressful than being stuck in the office with people who you would never have chosen to socialise with for 9 hours a day...
this is my little 12 inch cube fishtank and the guy in charge