WFH : The Downsides

Previously, I have written about the upsides that I have experienced in a work-from-home scheme in my article WFH : The Upsides. This time around I will be listing down the downsides of having to work from home.

This is not the first time that I have worked from home. As a matter of fact, I was working from home back in 2010 when I was working as a freelancer so I could say that I have quite the experience working from home.

Without further ado, I'll dive into the things that I can somehow say "negatives" when it comes to working at the comfort of your own home.

Time

Alright, I know that this one may be a bit confusing since I have already included this on the upside of working from home, but stay with me, hear me out. I included this here because when you are working from home the time element of work seems to be blurry, not only for yourself but to others too.

I am working as an IT guy which handles systems, infrastructure, and also client concerns. Our office hours are from 8:30 in the morning to 5:30 in the afternoon. And it's the same as when we started with our WFH arrangement.

But the problem is, other employees do not adhere to this schedule and they feel that "working from home" means working at your own time and own convenience. People started calling me as early as 7:00 in the morning, I'm still sleeping at that time for heaven's sake and others will call in the wee nights of the evening like... get a life!

Well, I understand why there are people like that, but I just wish they can be considerate because we should not adjust our lives to cater to their working hours. People should treat working from home as working at the office. Stick to the damn schedule and whatnot.

Boundaries

It's easy to separate work and life stuff when you are working in an office. As soon as you arrive in the office, personal stuff are left outside the door or right inside your pockets. But when you are working from home, it's just as easy for your work to creep up and invade your personal life.

In a WFH setup, your boss and your colleagues may think that you are working at the same pace as them and that you are also available and free to work whenever they are. That's one challenge that is easy to lose.

It's not just about external factors that cause this downside, it may also come from within oneself. Since I felt that it was really convenient and it was really comfortable working in my room, I was lost in the moment and just continued working until my body was aching.

Distractions

This one is a big downside when working from home especially when you are not living alone. Usually, it's not so much of a big deal for me since I am working in my own room and I can lessen the distractions by turning off the TV, closing the door, and turning off the lights. But one day, all my siblings were at the house and my folks are there too and it's quite lively in our living room. It's not really a bother since I can barely hear them but I just felt the urge to come out of my room and join in the rowdiness. Well, it's a welcome distraction for me since we seldom gather in the same room at the same time.

That was not really much of a deal since it was not really that often that we gather like that but I imagine that it could really be a problem for those people who also come from a big family.

I have also played the role of "the distraction" since my sister is also working from home nowadays. I pop up from her meetings and type several things on her keyboard while she works and I think that I am not alone with that quirk.

Resources

Use of resources such as electricity spikes when you are working from home. While in the office, you can use the electricity freely for air conditioning and multiple devices. But while you are working from home, you may of course want to work in comfort so the AC is on, or the electric fans. You have your computer and TV plugged in for a prolonged period of time so it will also eat away slowly on your bill.

Internet connection is also the most essential resource when you are working from home. If you don't have an internet connection it will be the same as though you are absent from the office. Unfortunately, in my place, fiber connection isn't available still so I am using an LTE router which I pay for every month for around $20+. This connection isn't unlimited and it runs on a per GB allocation basis. With normal use, I can stretch the allocation even until the following month, but if the WFH stint persists well, that limited GB allocation will not suffice anymore.

And that's why I admire those companies providing their employees with internet connections too. Just amazing.

Epilogue

Now that I have said my piece about the pros and cons of working from home setup, I think that I can justifiably impart what I think is my preferred working setup.

And it's none other than ...

Working From Home.

Of course, why? As they often and always say, nothing feels like home.

Hello!

How are you? I hope you are not feeling blue. So what's going on on this fine day? Are you working from home too? Or on-site?

If you would choose your own working arrangement, would you choose to work from home or in an office? Well, a home office sounds really cool and fancy too. I wouldn't mind working from there too.

Speaking of which, would you prefer a flexible working time or are you the type of worker that really does well when it's a fixed timeframe like 8-5?

Drop by on the comment section below and let's have a chat.

If you want to catch me at Noise, you can find me here: noise.cash/u/MeitanteiKudo.

Or if you are shy and want to speak privately, catch me on TG: MeitanteiKudo

I really appreciate your time here and as always stay chill and ...

Cheers!!!