3 Reasons Why Working From Home May Not Be Right For You

Working From Home – An Inconvenient Truth

Modern technology enables remote communication with practically anyone on Earth. As such, working from home has become more popular and practical for people who can do all of their work from behind a computer screen.

Working from home gives you the option to do so at your leisure and on the plus side, you never need to put on a suit & tie… or pants. I mean, you’re in your own home, who are you trying to impress?

However, just because working from home in your underwear is an option doesn’t mean that it’s the best option for you.

At first glance it may seem like working from home is all “pros” and no “cons” – no commute, a flexible work schedule, not having to deal with annoying coworkers, and so on.But there are a lot of things that don’t get considered at first glance… Here are a few reasons why working from home may not be all it’s cracked up to be.

1. Home-office or Office-home?

If your home becomes your office, how do your keep work from taking over your domestic space?

working from home

The dream of the home-office?

While you could read that literally and tremble in horror at the thought of work papers flooding every square inch of your home, an even worse fate is losing your refuge of comfort from the outside world since you’re constantly working at home.

One of the key benefits of working in an office that is often overlooked is the physical distance between the space where you work and the space where you unwind from work. That’s an intangible asset that you lose when you work from home.

2. Loss of Self-Discipline

Unless you’re incredibly self-disciplined, working from home can be a sure-fire way to minimize your productivity and devolve into an anti-social husk of your former self.

If you’re a fan of the web-comic The Oatmeal, you’ve probably seen his piece on why working from home is both awesome and terrible.

While you probably won’t lose your command of the English language just because you’re working from home, most of his points about loss of regimen and social isolation are spot-on.

I mean, if you don’t have a set window of time when you’re in a physical location dedicated to doing your work, what’s to stop you from putting it off for another hour… or two… or ten? Before you know it, your work regimen is a thing of the past and you’re finishing assignments at all hours of the day because you didn’t have guidelines in place to help you get your work done during a set time.

3. Loss of Professional Image

Imagine this: you have an important meeting with an executive who’s visiting in your area. He suggests you meet at your office so you invite him over. Unfortunately your office is actually your home-office, your receptionist is your barking, overly-enthusiastic dog, and you haven’t tidied up in a few weeks due to that whole loss of self-discipline issue.

Your home-office might not be exactly like the scrub-situation described here, but chances are, if you’re holding meetings in your home or at a coffee-shop because you don’t work in an office, you’re projecting an unprofessional image.

For all of the benefits that a home-office can provide you in terms of day-to-day convenience, the lack of a commute will probably be greatly outweighed when it comes time for an important, career-defining meeting, and your professional image is shattered by an unprofessional working space.

Working in an Office Doesn’t Have to Mean Working in a Cubicle

So before you decide to convert your loft into your home-office: press pause, consider whether working from home will actually work for you, and do some research on coworking spaces near you. Even if you work independently, the process of going into a shared office and being surrounded by other coworking members on a regular basis can help you stay disciplined and socially active.

 

 

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