Work from Home Pros and Cons You Must Know

Work from home has become a new mainstream, and economists stated its practice boasts 140% growth in 15 years. This comes with a price as COVID-19 sweeps the globe. People do physical distancing, schools and colleges are closed, and many officers are suggested to work remotely. However, some challenges are persisted by bits and pieces to vanish work from home’s benefits into thin air for a particular company. According to CNBC, As the coronavirus pandemic forces millions of Americans to shelter in place, many are forced to do their jobs from home for the first time ever. And when all this is over, a lot of those workers would like it to stay that way.

In recent years, employees have increasingly sought out positions with remote working capability in addition to flexibility and generous amounts of time off in order to achieve a better work/life balance, according to a poll of more than 1,500 working adults conducted in 2019 by employee benefits provider Unum.

Even more, technical problems—worst Wi-Fi or low computer specs—may also be the reason. It’s not all utopia just as in Google, Microsoft, or another hi-tech company where their workers are unquestionably already in place and facilitated really well with policies and infrastructures. The situation is likely to be eerily unsettling for start-ups or any other conventional business that requires constant, direct engagement among employees and their tasks per se. Then, no wonder why work from home pros and cons have existed. According to Mersive technologies inc,  FlexJobs’ Annual Survey, over half of respondents (58%) want to work remotely full-time post-pandemic, while 39% of respondents want some sort of hybrid work environment.

Both copywriters and graphic designers aren’t obliged to encounter clients directly, and most of their duties can be executed individually. While the malleability of work from home can be priceless, nothing makes remote workers in fear as much as the lack of coordination. Something that is built during morning meetings, casual chats, coffee break, or even lunch, somehow infuse an advantage to sustain day-to-day progress.

We do polling to our employees

The naked truth, not everyone likes it. Maybe to some people, the idea just doesn’t match with their nature, or it’s merely too difficult to implement. We don’t know. And as you can see, the level of interest in this work from home operation springs to be more neutral, which presumably due to the similarity they find in their default office circumstance. Let’s say they face the same boredom and are still constrained by the deadline.

Pros and cons of work from home

Surprisingly, some stuff that sounds trivial and less important affects their polls in an odd way. Just like an advantage to wearing oversized shirts and shorts, that with no doubt is casually followed by not taking a shower as well. Quite silly, but that’s fine. One of our employees even said, “Doing work from home can save my perfume.” The other employee report that doing work from home can increased productivity, better focus and less stress are some of the main reasons they work remotely. According to Awl Labs, Studies have shown that commuting negatively impacts health and happiness. When you work from home, not only will you have more free time in your day, you’re likely to see an improvement in your well-being too.

Remote workers have flexibility in their schedules and have a better work-life balance. According to Awl Labs, The 2019 State of Remote Work report found that one of the top reasons survey respondents gave for working remotely was work-life balance. As we touched on earlier, the flexibility that remote work provides gives people the ability to better manage their obligations whether they’re work-related or not.

Based on walk me, many companies were offering a work-from-home option, and other work flexibility, before the pandemic. Between these early adopters and those who’ve transitioned – or are in the process now due to COVID-19, the benefits of a WFH model are clear: 

• 85% of businesses have seen an increase in productivity 
• Four in five respondents prefer companies with flexible working policies
• 65% of businesses say flexible workspaces help reduce expenses

On the contrary side, the facility abundance arrives to be their most uncontrolled issue. As mentioned before, how can small companies be able to facilitate every sort of need? After all, it’s also impossible if the equipment in the office were being brought to the employee’s place.

Communication is also a must thing to consider. Communication plays an essential role in maintaining strong, long-term working relationships within an organization. It is especially important when operating remotely and when navigating uncertain times. A company that invests in clear communications will build trust with its employees, leading to more productivity, performance, and morale. For a creative industry like us, brainstorming together at a round table has become a routine. Throwing ideas, emotions, and such certainly can’t be replaced with video calls. More especially for the extroverted souls that want to break free, they have double-trouble due to loneliness too!

Communicating and collaborating effectively is difficult when you and your colleagues are located in different places. In other words, the tools and strategies you use to communicate need to be intentional and well thought out.

Choose an asynchronous communication tool (e.g., Slack and email) and establish a consistent schedule for face-to-face meetings via video conferencing. Miscommunication will decrease when everyone understands the methods of collaboration.

Tips to stay productive at home

Pretty easy to follow, right? Just don’t read too much news on social media, aliases stick to your company’s agenda. Replicate your office routines, if you regularly wake up at 6 a.m., do the same thing whilst working remotely. Keep away from distractions, maybe you don’t have a little kid that’s ready to annoy you 24/7 yet, but obviously Netflix is ready to bother you. Also, learn how to sit quietly, there is a method called Sitzfleisch, which literally means “sitting meat”. With some practice, you may be able to avoid the tempting bed which readily puts you to sleep.

Don’t forget to do work out too! It’s good for your spine or just to burn calories, especially if you need to lose some weight. And always share your progress through the Check-in and Check-out system to your colleagues. let you check in on whether you’re sticking to your schedule.  Let them know what you’ve progressed, even a little, and what obstacles you’ve faced. Though physically in distance, your social life must remain connected. If you’re following those tips, hopefully you may reap the work from home benefits.

See also: Safety Considerations for Remote Workers

And now to dump a cold glass of water on your head: Work from home simply isn’t for everyone. You have to learn to be resourceful, independent, and patient. Work from home requires the discipline to overcome the distractions that you’ll encounter any second. You need to be motivated to get everything done as your environment is telling you to procrastinate.

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