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Full-Time Remote Working Will Destroy Us.
Am I the only one who feels this way?
I’ll preface this by saying I’ve worked from home for roughly 7 years now. Through this time, I’ve had multiple jobs and all supported some form of remote working. Many times I commuted to client sites a day or two a week. Sometimes I’d go to the office for team or company wide meetings. Overall, my days in the office were typically 2–3 days a week.
As a mother I’ve enjoyed the benefits of working from home. I’ve felt less stress in being able to manage my workload as well as motherhood. I’ve been able to block my calendar to pick up my children from school. I’ve been able to take a call while walking to the bus stop to get my son. I’ve had so much flexibility over the years that I am thankful for the opportunity.
But, things change.
Working from home is great when it’s peaceful.
Prior to covid, I truly enjoyed working from home. I woke up at a reasonable hour, dropped off the kids, made a second coffee, and began my work day. I’d take breaks to walk the dogs, or warm up lunch. It was relatively low stress dependent on my workload. Some days I’d sit at my desk all day without getting up due to a production deployment, or other deliverable but most days, work was stress free and enjoyable.
I always tried to get the majority of my work done earlier to have flexibility later in the afternoon when I picked up my kids. I blocked time to make them a snack and ask them about their day.
I had achieved a proper work life balance.
All that noise, noise, noise, noise.
Enter Covid. Working from home is entirely different now. I have a husband, two children and two dogs at home. There’s breakfast, lunch and dinner to be made. The days consist of virtual schooling setup, organizing the kids materials, helping them when they need it and my regular day job.
The dogs are needier too. They have grown accustomed to more walks and play time.
My relaxed morning doesn’t exist anymore. It’s wonderful to spend so much time with my family but I’m losing my sanity. My once peaceful mornings are now chaotic.
