Working from Home

[ChappyUK]

I've noticed this becoming increasing popular. We are so well connected nowadays unless you are in a job where you need to be somewhere to do your job companies are happy for you to work from home as long as you get the job done.

I've recently started a job and was just told there is no reason to come into the office until next Friday. It's a 2hr each way commute so can't say I'm complaining.

Their take is I could be using that 4hrs to work for them rather than waste it commuting.

Just wanted to know what other people's experiences are with working from home.

Are you more efficient?
Do you take the piss?
Do you head out to cafes or do you work best from home?

Share your experiences and what you think are the pros and cons.

 

[RelaxMax]

Watch your weight

People I know who work from home usually put on a couple of kilos

 

[Doss]

Doesn’t work for me, not in the jobs I’ve had thus far anyway.

Too easy to get distracted I find.

 

[ChappyUK]

Doesn’t work for me, not in the jobs I’ve had thus far anyway.

Too easy to get distracted I find.

That's my main worry. I get the feeling work from home translates to day off for my wife.

 

[Messenger]

I do it from time to time if I have a meeting closer to home than the office, which is 40km away (75 min commute).

I don't get as much done, too many distractions.

 

[ChappyUK]

I do it from time to time if I have a meeting closer to home than the office, which is 40km away (75 min commute).

I don't get as much done, too many distractions.

Do you work at Dingley.

 

[Messenger]

That's my main worry. I get the feeling work from home translates to day off for my wife.

"Oh, you're working from home! I need you to do this, this and that"

"I'm WORKING from home"

"Sure you are"

I do appreciate the collegiality of the office as well. I have a door on my space rather than a cubicle but I find the ability to exchange views in person and touch base with my boss face to face is fairly valuable. I couldn't work remotely every day.

 

[Messenger]

Do you work at Dingley.

There will be a lot of good work happening at Dingers in the future. What a time to be alive.

 

[ChappyUK]

There will be a lot of good work happening at Dingers in the future. What a time to be alive.

If you work at Dingley it's more likely 'lucky to be alive.'

 

[wal]

I never work from home, but I often sleep at work.

 

[radiojake]

Never had a job where I could do that, but having said that I think I would be terrible at it - I had to go to the Uni Library in order to study/write essays properly so I don't see how work would be any different

 

[kickazz]

It's good if you have something like dinner documentation that you just need to sit down and do. But it does require disciple, too easy to keep grabbing coffees, cook up a breakfast or even.....

 

[The Passenger]

Been working from home on and off for a few years now. Totally from home in the last 18 months. It's brilliant. I hate commuting and the flexibility in hours is really handy, although I do try to keep to a routine. Only if I have a big night on the beers does the next day blow out by a few hours.

Most people say they don't know how they would not get distracted by TV but 75% of my TV watching is sport which isn't a factor Monday to Friday during the day. Regardless daytime TV is ****ing terrible (this has changed obviously with streaming providers such as Netflix).

Need to lay the law down pretty early with your Mrs that you are working and don't have the time to give the place a spring clean every day. My Mrs has always been good with that which helps.

I usually break up the week and go to the library to work once a week. Also need to make sure you still get out. I'll walk with the Mrs to the train each morning which is 20-25 minutes round trip.

The biggest con is the lack of social side but I joined a rugby club in November so that gives me the social fix (as well as the physical benefits).

 

[Wojcinski]

I work from home occasionally and find I probably get more stuff done as I don't want my boss to think I'm not doing anything.

 

[Demosthenes]

I think it depends on your job. Technically most of my work could be done from home, but realistically I'm most effective if I am building the sorts of relationships that only come from seeing people face to face regularly.

I really notice the difference when working with people off-site who only see me once every six months. Videoconferencing and stuff helps, but it's never going to be the same.

I currently have a sub-10min commute so that isn't particularly pressing. Were I to move further away I might consider working from home 20-30% of the time.

That said, I do cherish the ability to separate work and home life by locking my door at the end of the day and getting in my car.

 

[Smoooothy]

I also work for a company that outright encourages it. I can't stand it. My home is where I rest, not work

 

[Catfish Alley]

I do it often but if I’m really busy I prefer to be in the office. If it’s a quieter day then I can manage to get stuff done around the house as well.

 

[HomerThompson]

I've worked from home semi-regularly for years but don't have designated days. I'd do it more often if I could but it's hard to justify with a 20 minute commute, no kids, and a semi-managerial role with lots of meetings. I have a decent workstation at home in a separate room to the rest of the house, which makes it a lot easier to stay focused and switch off afterwards.

The downside for me are expectations that I'm either bludging or available around the clock. Because people don't see you around the office doing work there's a tendency to assume that you are only working when others are interacting with you. My boss is pretty good with letting me organise my tasks to suit office and wfh days as needed.
Other remote workers seem a bit more isolated from day-to-day chitchat and get forgotten in general announcements. A couple of my co-workers really feel the social isolation and have more intense phone calls plus long catch-up conversations when they come in to the main office. I've also seen some senior management take remote workers less seriously when it comes to assessing performance, pay reviews, and redundancy. Which just sucks.

 

[Golden_6]

I feel like it would be great to work from home a couple of days a week and head into the office for say 2-3 days a week. It would certainly break things up and prevent it from becoming too stale. It would be even better if you had a job where if you put your head down for 3-4 hours you could finish your days work. Would certainly open up a lot of things I feel.

 

[TheWoodenSlug]

I do it from time to time and I love it and wish I could do it more often. But I'm an antisocial campaigner, so that would play a part.

I do tend to take the piss a bit (though I'm here in the office posting on bigfooty right now, so it's not exclusive to working from home), but I find at home I can get more done in less time due to there being no distractions, so it probably evens out in the end.

 

[Catfish Alley]

I feel like it would be great to work from home a couple of days a week and head into the office for say 2-3 days a week. It would certainly break things up and prevent it from becoming too stale. It would be even better if you had a job where if you put your head down for 3-4 hours you could finish your days work. Would certainly open up a lot of things I feel.

That’s kinda what I do to be honest. I can usually wrap up my work in the morning and then maybe just do a few emails/admin work later in the afternoon.

 

[MrsEddieBetts]

I did one day a week from home towards the end of my pregnancy and to be honest I was just lying on the couch with my laptop replying to emails.

I work from home instead of calling in sick. My boss would prefer me to be 50% productive than take a day off and be paid sick leave.

 

[kickazz]

I did one day a week from home towards the end of my pregnancy and to be honest I was just lying on the couch with my laptop replying to emails.

I work from home instead of calling in sick. My boss would prefer me to be 50% productive than take a day off and be paid sick leave.

The trap with that is that to recover quickly and properly you actually need to properly rest sometimes.
I have dialled in to important meetings once our twice when sick. But working instead of resting when you are sick is not a good thing. Your sick days are given to you in lieu of the higher pay you'd get as a casual or contractor. A good boss would realise this.

 

[MrsEddieBetts]

The trap with that is that to recover quickly and properly you actually need to properly rest sometimes.
I have dialled in to important meetings once our twice when sick. But working instead of resting when you are sick is not a good thing. Your sick days are given to you in lieu of the higher pay you'd get as a casual or contractor. A good boss would realise this.

Yeah I know, but I'd rather save my sick days up in case of something big. I needed 2 weeks off when I had an operation, if I'd taken a sick day every time I get laryngitis (a couple of times a year) I wouldn't have had enough leave saved up.

 

[Bunk Moreland]

I work from home now but that’s because I freelance / contract to a number of different places.

Every situation is different. I think if you’re in a permanent role and there’s an office, on the whole you’re better off being there. You keep in the loop and build up a better rapport with others.