For plenty of people, working from home sounds like a dream come true. The idea of getting out of bed and moving to your home office in a matter of minutes without having to dress up and deal with co-workers face to face may seem like the best solution ever.
For those that have more experience with it, remote work has its good and bad sides. What’s important is that you assess all the pros and cons and determine whether it’s the best option for you.
Let’s take a look at what makes remote work great and what doesn’t.
Pros of Working From Home
While you still have to perform your duties and meet deadlines, working from home enables you to be your own boss in plenty of ways. Here are some of the major pros of remote work.
You Can Have More Flexibility
Working from home enables you to set your work hours based on when you’re most productive. You can schedule your daily tasks the way it suits you, and you don’t have to worry about what you’re going to wear and how your co-workers perceive you throughout your working day.
You Can Find a Better Work-Life Balance
When you’re working in an office, it can be difficult to find a satisfying work-life balance. Since remote work provides you with more autonomy, you can find more time for yourself without it affecting your job.
You Don’t Need to Commute
For most employees, dealing with long commutes is a big issue. With remote work, you don’t have to spend hours in a car or on a subway, and you can save some money.
Your Day Can Be Less Stressful
Remote work takes you away from all the stress at the office. You’ve also got more control over events that might trigger you, and you can take a break whenever you feel like your daily tasks are too much for you to handle.
Cons of Working From Home
Even though remote work gives you more freedom to set up your working day in line with your preferences, it’s also restrictive in a variety of ways. Before you decide that you want to work from home, you should consider these cons.
You Can Have Trouble Separating Work and Life
With remote work, the line between doing your job and living your life tends to blur. It can become difficult to clock out and go back to your regular activities without thinking about all the responsibilities that are waiting for you.
You Can Feel Lonely
Working from home restricts you to communicating with people via your phone and computer. Even if you’re a more introverted person, it can feel lonely being without human interaction for days. It’s also easy to fall into routine and have trouble making yourself get out.
You Can Misinterpret What People Mean
Even if you have Zoom meetings, most of your communication will probably happen through email and online chat. Without being able to see the other person’s body language, it can often be hard to determine the tone of their message and figure out what they mean to tell you.
You Need Plenty of Self-Discipline
Being your own boss usually isn’t as easy as it sounds. You need a lot of self-discipline to stick to the schedule you’ve set up and avoid the temptation of procrastinating by checking your phone, visiting social media channels, etc.
Depending on factors such as your personality and the kind of work that you do, it’s up to you to decide whether remote work is the best option or if you are better off working in an office.
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