Here’s a great little article I got today from the ACM talking about the Work From Home Generation. It mentions some of the pros and cons of each.
Pros:
- No commute
- Flexibility
- Saving money and the environment
- Increased productivity
Cons:
- Brainstorming is difficult
- You never leave work
I agree with most of these, but some of the cons can also be applied to the constant connectivity associated with today’s work force. Crackberry’s and email ready cell phones can also lead to much the same feelings as working from home if not kept in check.
How do you feel about working from home?
Pic courtesy of .fabio
I’m doing it right now. Working from my home-away-from-home, The Grind, a cafe in Lincoln Square. I can really focus on my work, eavesdrop, and eat excellent vegan baked goods.
One of our clients is really interested in the work of Daniel Pink, who wrote a book on this idea of the freelance nation, an idea where freelancers would come together on an ad-hoc basis. No corporations needed. Quite interesting.
I agree 100% with Shylo–especially if I’m writing on a deadline or doing time-sensitive research–the peace and quiet of home can be an ideal workspace!
Hm. Sounds nice. Unfortunately, some of us do not have the kind of job that would allow WFH. We need constant server access to giant files, blazingly fast desktop machines, mount rooms, etc. etc. etc.
WFH shares some of the disadvantages as freelancing. Work from home too often, and an eerie sense of loneliness starts to creep in. Working in a cafe helped, but it was essentially white noise. There was activity, but little interaction. Having a common group of people with a similar purpose has been just as refreshing as I’d hoped.
Even though I’ve only been here at Slack for about 3 months, the thought of going back to the cafe experience makes me a cringe a little.
Still, having this flexibility is a great part about working here. Trust, communication, and responsibility are key components to WFH and can be very rewarding.
I WFH almost every day, and making plans with other people for lunch or dinner helps me solve those “constantly working” and “never seeing people” problems. Yes, I meant the airquotes. My Crackberry takes care of all of that. Shylo has a nice idea about working in a cafe, but c’mon, “excellent vegan baked goods?” Not possible. Airquotes again.
[...] brainstormers and a little on the workaholic side. That’s what the article says anyway. My friend Jeff alerted me to the article, probably because my Google Talk status now says “working from [...]
I’m a pretty accomplished vegan baker, Libby. Trust me, they’re good.
Anyway, I hear you on the interaction, Tommaso. A bunch of my freelancer friends formed a group called IdeaXchange where they get together, lunch, and email about work- and life-related topics. They say it helps a lot.
I have been meaning to actually post my first official blog on this very topic. As I have recently entered back into the work force after staying home with my second child for a year and a half. Many can attest to my cabin-fever mentality as it became ubundantly clear that I am simply one of those moms who need to have both a creative outlet and colleague interaction while at the same time be able to be there much more for my kids than I had been in the past.
Enter the flexible schedule. Challenging – yes, but rewarding at the same time. The key is to make it seemless. Keep lines of communication open at all times and give the sense that you are there – just in another part of the office.
Although I support WFH for others, I would be a disaster working from home, especially during the day (night’s are OK). I’d be in the fridge way too often, take too many breaks, want to work in my garden (no vegetables, just flowers), etc. Probably because I grew up in a very structured work environment, I work best during “office hours” when I’m in my office, though I do plenty of daytime cafeing when I travel (Starbucks is my office away from my office). I admire those who really put the “W” in WFH during the day, but I’d be challenged to be as productive as I am in environments where colleagues or other people are present.
In regards to MDC’s comment, you do have constant access to the server, large files, etc. It’s called logging into the VPN. It’s great! Trust me – I often WFH all the time after work hours and I am constantly accessing large files, etc. Let me know when I can pop by your desk and I will show you how.
On another note, I agree with Shylo and Matt. There are some days when WFH is absolutely neccessary. Especially when I am in Excel heaven.
My desk at times can often be referred to as Grand Central Station. So peace and quiet comes a long way for me. Of course on Jeff’s note, when I WFH I often put in 14 hours straight days with no breaks because my OCD nature really kicks in. Guess you can’t win either way, huh?