Working from Home - the new normal?
Hi,
I was thinking today that in the past 5 months now, I've spent most of time on the same chair in the same room working. Since the the crisis and the lock down has started I've managed to work more from home.
For me it was a dream, as I find the commute a real time waster. If I need to see the customer, I travel to them as customers don't come to us. I go to the office only when it is really hot outside or if I have to get money back for the firm. This is it.
I was thinking that by working from home, I will be able to do a lot more stuff private, but it is quite the opposite, I work even more for my company than before. So I do something wrong. I've tried to diminish the time spent in front of the screen, but the work keeps on adding and adding.
I've made a deal with my wife, so that she takes my laptop in the evening to spend time with the family and I'm allowed to work again when everyone is sleeping.
Also, i think I have to make a deal with her on new objective. I have to give her the work laptop at 17:30 and will need to work at least an hour on my other projects. Else I lose focus on them.
This is the danger of working from home, in pjs. that sometimes work infects also other aspects of life. I think more and more, work from home will be practiced, as the companies will see that they save money with the office and that people deliver more than usual.
How do you see it?
Home is not made for work if you ask me. This shitty pandemic has twisted many things in our lives...
I suspect that you are absolutely right. Companies are going to realize that many employees are as productive or MORE productive from home. It won't take long to downsize the home office with 'shared spaces' for the people that come in sporadically. Maybe a fancy new office with far less square footage.
I further suspect there will be a rise in divorce. For various reasons but all related to 24 hour proximity.
And the milk man will actually deliver milk :)
Everything has its pros and cons. On the one hand you save time and money to get to work. On the other hand it is much harder to concentrate when you work from home and it is more work. I think the solution between you and your wife is really good.....for now.;)
Hmmm, the self-accountable and self-driven will probably over-deliver, the others will under-deliver because there's no one with the eyes on them and not a standard work environment. Likely the latter will be the first to lose their jobs as well.
This situation makes a lot of things change. Now working online is not an option. You have to work online. And you can do that staying anywhere. It is the same thing as if you were in the office. Here you are at home and doing the same thing.