The Pros & Cons of Working from Home. Alone.
COVID-19 is here to stay. At least until the end of 2020, experts say.
I’ve always thought that working remotely would be so cool but the fact that I can’t travel is a bummer. How am I supposed to live my Digital Nomad life if I can’t work from Bali?
As of March 10, staying in Singapore seems to be a safer option as compared to traveling to countries like South Korea and certain parts of Europe. This wasn't the case just a month ago. Singapore was leading the pack back then.
Initial plans for working from home were to last until early March but from the looks of it, it might stretch a lot further down the year. I’m predicting this to continue until June. So let me first start off by listing down the advantages of working from home.
Flexibility
When you’re not required to be in an office during a set time frame, you’re free to manage your own time. I’m a night owl so this is a big plus for me. I tend to do all my work late at night just before I sleep at around 2 am. Especially when I need to get creative. And guess what, I am currently writing this at 1 am. This is when I am free from distractions because everyone else is asleep and it is super quiet. Because I am one of those people who hate listening to music when I am trying to focus. Definitely not a fan of Spotify being played aloud in the office.
Working from home is also a good time to upgrade yourself. It’s about time you start attending that course you’ve always wanted to but couldn’t because you’re stuck in the office during the day. And of course, clearing up all the emails later in the evening.
More savings
This is true for both employers and employees. Provided you don’t GrabFood or Deliveroo every single day. The employer can get massive savings on utility bills and rent. While the employees can save on transport and food. Especially if you’re working in the CBD. Eating “The Daily Cut” every single day just isn't working out for your diet or wallet.
Now on to the disadvantages of working from home.
Lesser collaborative work (for some people)
While most employees are still able to collaborate via video calls & meetings. It is especially difficult to collaborate when you’re in video production. Even more so now that most teams are segregated into smaller groups and not allowed to meet each other. Sure, you can shoot a vlog or makeup tutorial by yourself but what if you’re required to shoot something more complex, like a short film or TVC. It will require more time, effort and coordination to get everything done as compared to getting everyone down at the same location to shoot something.
Also, let’s face it. Collaborations are just more fun & a lot faster in person than in Zoom calls. At least you don’t have to wait or raise your virtual hands for the other person to stop talking before you can start talking.
Work-life balance suffers
When you’re working from home, it takes extra effort to remind yourself when to stop working. Especially when you’re in your bedroom with the curtains not drawn, you can hardly tell if it’s day or night. If you’re a workaholic, things might actually be worse. So start by setting an alarm clock for when you should take a break from work. Maybe to grab a coffee or just looking out the window to rest your eyes from staring at the screen the whole time. Take it easy, fellas.
Personally, I feel that working from home 1 to 2 days per week would be perfect. So then you have the other 3–4 days to collaborate with your other team members to come up with more spontaneous ideas that won’t necessarily happen if you were working from home.
That’s it from me for today. It’s way past my bedtime so Good Night!
