The Coronavirus Pandemic has forced many workplaces to shut down. It has introduced to the world remote working conditions. Many people have been forced to use technological advancements to work from home. Suddenly, Skype and Zoom are booming meeting points for many industries. While they were in use before, people preferred face to face interactions than online ones.
The mass communication industry is what has been hard hit by the pandemic. They now have to rely on Zoom, Skype, and teleconferences to perform interviews, which a while back were done face to face. Remote working is essential to curb this pandemic but has introduced heavy unemployment. Businesses have realized they can work with only a few necessary staff. As you work remotely, consider using ContractSafe with your team to secure contracts and for easy contract location and review.
So, what are the advantages of working from home?
1. You have more than enough time with loved ones
The most beautiful part about working from home is getting time to be with your loved ones. Before Covid-19 struck, so many families were on the verge of falling apart. The father was out on business trips every other day. The mother was working multiple jobs to provide for the family.
With the pandemic, children have realized they indeed have a father who can play catch with them. They now know their mother loves her sleep and doesn’t want to be disturbed before 9 am. While before, the mother was the one waking everybody up from the bed.
2. Bed-to-Bed Commuting
There is no commuting when you work from home. You can work from your bed. You can eat, sleep, and work without getting out of bed. Though not a very good habit, but work is work. As long as you deliver your work, nobody will question why you are still in bed at noon. You don’t have to prepare to go anywhere. You don’t even need those fancy office clothes. Your t-shirt and sweatpants are good to go. However, I must say that this habit encourages some bad habits like laziness.
3. You Get To Save More
Working from home saves you more money. You get to save on those costly lunches that your work colleagues often convince you to participate in unwillingly. Or the coffee you buy at four dollars or more to keep up appearance in the office. When you work from home, you have no one but yourself and family to keep up the appearance. Your family won’t mind homemade coffee or sandwiches. You also get to save on transportation money that could be very costly over time. Financial challenges you had before because of unwise spending are past experiences when working from home.
4. You Don’t Have To Battle Crazy Traffic or Crowds
Have you ever been stepped on when you attempted squeezing yourself inside an already crowded lift? Have you ever felt suffocated from the fumes produced by vehicles stuck in traffic? With remote working, you don’t have to get these discomforts every day of your life.
5. Save Time
Remote work allows you to work at any time. You can have midnight meetings. You can call or get called on in the wee hours of the morning. You can have those early morning meetings on time because you won’t be delayed by traffic. You get to clear off the pile of clothes that need washing or ironing. When you schedule your time well, all these become possible.
Let’s face it, the number of hours we spend in offices are not always spent working. We spend part of our office time arguing about the best restaurant recently opened in town. However, working from home ensures that you do the necessary office work needed. The rest of the time, you spend with your family or on completing those weekend scheduled tasks like vacuuming the house.
6. Your Schedule Is More Flexible
As long as you have your daily work plan, you can create a flexible schedule. You get to rest when you like, and you can plan to work on the more complex tasks when your mind is more settled.
What are the advantages working in an office?
While working from home has been essential these past six months that changed the world, there are also benefits of working in the office.
1. Effective Time Management
The office has set time schedules that all office staff abide with. The fixed office hours are very good for people who have a hard time with time discipline. The time slot that you have to work with daily will enable you to get your work done on time. Repeated behavior makes a habit. When you have the habit of doing things at certain times, you become more disciplined.
2. Easy to Schedule Meetings
The office environment makes it easier to have meetings. Matters arising about the company issues are sorted out much easier and faster because you can directly talk to the staff involved. Remote working will require you to call the employee involved who may not take the matter as seriously as when you directly talk to them.
3. Develop Work Relationships
While remote working enables you to create a working relationship, one on one interaction in the office helps you develop a bond with colleagues. It is in an office that you get to meet people who end up becoming lifetime friends. A manager or supervisor will relate and work better with the staff he meets daily than people he talks to on Skype or over the phone.
4. A Better Working Environment
The office offers a more comfortable working environment with less interruption from children. There are many Skype and Zoom meetings that you hear all kinds of noise in the background. Some are interrupted by children crying or family members arguing in the background. Offices are built in a way that no unnecessary noise can disrupt the working environment.
Is it better to work from home or the office?
During this time of the pandemic, it is more recommended to work from home. Many companies have adapted to the idea of having their staff working from the comfort of their homes. But as soon as the Coronavirus is over, the office environment should be adopted again. The office is still more ideal as a working environment than working from home.
Interesting related article: “What is Teleworking?“