Working from home, it’s not for everyone, but more and more companies are giving their staff the opportunity to work in their own space. Is it a good idea? To begin with I didn’t think so. There are so many distractions at home, and how do you manage or work with a team that you can’t keep an eye on? I knew it wasn’t for me the minute the idea was proposed but with an office move imminent I conceded to giving it a go.
Within the first hour I was sold. That first hour was spent sleeping in – because suddenly my daily commute went from about an hour each way to a two second walk from my bedroom to my office. The time I would usually spend brushing away my bed hair, dressing in dull “work” clothes and painting on makeup to hide my sleepiness was then used to eat a proper breakfast. My day had dramatically improved and I hadn’t even started work yet.
When I did start however, I was presented with the first hurdle – a distraction in the form of my beautiful dog Molly. I tried to do the right thing and ignore her, but the small hill of toys being placed at my feet was steadily growing and to be fair she is waaaaay more fun than work. I’m not proud to say I didn’t get much work done that day.
The second day I was smarter. I slept in again – just because I could – but after a proper breakfast I walked the dog, popped the washing on and even started the crockpot for dinner. With a napping dog/distraction I was able to finally sit down and get to it. It was the most productive day I had experienced in my career so far. I staved off loneliness by chatting with my team online and taking the odd conference call and by the time knock off came I felt like I had hardly worked at all. Instead of the usual grind I had spent a day in a place I could be comfortable, wearing clothes I was comfortable in and did what I was good at. I had no long trip home to worry about and I had even gotten a head start on my after work chores.
So, working from home is great for the employee but what’s the selling point for the company you ask? It’s all in the relationships. The trust that was put in me to manage myself inspired loyalty and the opportunity to be completely myself in my own stress-free environment prompted creativity. It might be a rocky start but, in the end, you’ll have staff who work harder, smarter and with more pride in their work.
