Living home-based (Pros & Cons of Work-from-home)

Working home-based is pretty much a privilege where I’m from. Our commute system sucks. Yeah, italicizing that because it really. sucks. A normal 15-minute drive finds ways to turn into an hour or longer’s wait... and this happens everyday- no exaggeration included.

With working in the confines of your safe zone, some would think that this is an epitome of heaven; but having your home as also your work environment can be a bit of a confusing ride. So here are pros and cons with working from home, with the words coming from a girl who‘s been working home-based since she graduated (2 years work experience & still living with parents).

CONS

You know what they say… after a hurricane comes a rainbow, so…

1. Lack of social interaction

• This seems like the worst con for most people. You know, for every time I share that I work from home, you can bet that the other person would respond something in the lines of “Doesn’t it get lonely?”. As satisfying as it would be to exaggeratedly roll my eyes in front of each one of them, it does. Don’t get me wrong, my job is full-time and it’s really operational. We have teams and everything, but… you know how when you’re in an actual office and you’re working on tasks, but you still get to chat with your co-workers naturally? And you can go out for lunch together, go gimmick after work, and the like? When you work from home, it’s kind of weird because you can’t even do small talk the normal way, because you’re virtually chatting each other instead. You can be left on read, have more misunderstandings with emojis and the “haha” and “lol”s. The interaction is unnatural, and sometimes it does get lonely. If you’re the type to go out for drinks or with friends at night though, then you’re probably safe from this long term social detox.

2. No new friends

• This was honestly one of my dilemmas, or was one of the things that bug me from time to time. I’ve developed new friends at my job, but sometimes it feels like we’re more of connections instead of newfound friends. If you work in an office, you can physically hang out with your new work friends even on weekends, so you can connect on a deeper level. You can even hug when one of you breaks down. At home, only I hug myself. :( But kidding aside, this instance would vary on situations. For example at my job, my teammates and I live far apart, which makes meeting up challenging. But for instances where you and your teammates luckily live in areas near each other which makes it easy and convenient for you to meet up, this could be your light at the end of the tunnel!

3. Not the actual work experience

• You can be home-based and still have meetings, presentations, pitches, arguments, and other office-related operations. Let me tell you though that it’s not the same. This has a corresponding ‘pro’, but let’s leave that for later. Presenting or doing pitches online will never be the same as having pitches in person, where you’re pretty much a “we’re open, come in” sign. When you present at home, whether through Skype, Slack, Hangouts, etc., the people you pitch to or meet with won’t see how bad you’re sweating, how much your knees are shaking, or even how much you’re playing with your hands as you get nervous. It’s not the same transparency. I mean, you probably don’t even need to dress formally from the waist down. You can go on a meeting with just your underwear on. Not saying I do that! Teehee. So the simple things that you can learn from the experience of working in an office setting such as managing time (preparation-travel-set up-work), advance preparation for files to bring the next day, dealing with on the spot conflicts whether physical or social, and etc… the online experience isn’t the same. Personally, it’s not even enough experience.

4. You can forget to step up your game

• Now, by ‘step up’ I don’t mean to chat your boss every single waking moment. You see, it gets so easy to kick your shoes off and just rest. If it’s easy to relax most of the time, it’s also easy for your boss to forget you.. or worse, have suspicions of your productivity. If you want to grow career-wise and have chances to get promoted, you will have to take initiative for every chance you get. If you have healthy comments and suggestions in mind, let them out in the open. Let yourself be heard, because everyone’s easy to forget online. After all, you’re all just thumbnails on your boss’s computer screen.
• Aside from that, it’s also so easy to forget how to fix and groom yourself. You can get really comfortable in your pajamas and home-wear that even when you go out with friends… you might still be in that form of presentation. Trust me, I’m still on this phase. When I meet my friends, I can see how much they’ve stepped up with their make up and fashion skills. As for me though, I’ve stepped up my netflix-binge-watching skills. It’s so easy to get lazy and to stop caring.

5. Carries a stigma

• When people hear “work from home” the responses and impressions are usually negative. Their usual impressions are that it’s freelance or unstable, or like it’s a temporary thing. This is because the people who are home-based are few compared to those who work in the office. They are unfamiliar of full-time jobs at home, so they automatically think that it’s an unsustainable job or lifestyle.

PROS

1. You can save more

• This is one of the things I love about home-based. You can really save more. Sure, most home-based jobs don’t offer benefits and you will have to take care of them or have someone else take care of the, but think about this… the expenses you have for travel and food is deducted from the amount you get which is absolutely a whole chunk if you live far from your workplace, and if the value of your transportation can be expensive. Also consider the times you will suddenly need to get a taxi instead of the regular bus or train ride. If you choose to stay in a condo near your office, consider how much you deduct for your rent too. With work from home, you are in full control of your money. No taxes deducted, and what you get is what you get.
• People have asked me if I’m planning on trying an office-based job anytime, because they couldn’t imagine working from home. To tell you the truth, I’ve considered it to get more experiences; but it’s hard to let go because I don’t feel much inconveniences with my job. They’re paying me well, the operations are alright, and I can rest more than most people could. It’s really a privilege already.

2. More time for personal activities

• By ‘activities’ I mean like working out, going to workshops, dates, or even just going on a game of thrones marathon! You have a lot of time in your hands, since you won’t need to travel home and do preparations. This is unless you have a lot of work on your plate that you will have to/ want to work overtime. If you want to get a gym membership, it’s easier to commit going after work hours or before work hours; if you’ve been dying to go to this woodworking workshop, you can!; or if you want to start a sideline or a small business, it’s easier to manage since you have the time after work to handle it. Possibly, you can also take the time after work to practice on your skills for work! So whether it’s personal or career-related skills, experiences, events, you have the privilege of having more time to work on your growth through your own initiative.

3. The haven for introverts to flourish

• If you’re an introvert like me, you’re probably already chanting “yaass” right there behind the screen. I’ve mentioned the cons of being home-based like getting lonely and having less social interactions, but to tell you the truth… I’m kind of fine with it. I was never the chatty kind of person, unless you’re already super close to me. I easily get anxious with small talk and conversations, and I tire pretty fast during conversations. I doesn’t mean that I don’t want to talk to you, I’m just really not a chatty person and oftentimes I’m most comfortable when people take it slow with me or when I’m at peace. If you relate, high-five!
• One thing I want to emphasize here is that I became more confident in my home-based job. Back then even in my internship (office-based), my confidence was really low. I never contribute my ideas, and I mostly just follow instructions. At my actual job though, I was able to deliver my work more effectively. I’m usually conscious when people stop by and look at my screen, but at home since no one does that, I can confidently say that I flourished. The once shy and timid girl grew into a strong one who finally speaks up. In chat messages, and even meetings over Skype, I can finally do reports and presentations confidently. My voice doesn’t shake anymore even when I’m talking to the CEO… even when I’m defending what I believe is correct for projects. And yes, no more sweaty palms and shaking knees. Introverts can possibly grow better in this environment since it will test their social skills gradually depending on situations. This experience is not the same as when working at office environments, but growth you get from this sort of environment is also never a waste.

4. Workplace flexibility

• Now this is also one of my favorite things with working home-based. By “home-based”, it means what it means. So 10/10 you’ll mostly work at home whether at your special table, bed, kitchen, garden, or even at the restroom! You have the ultimate comfort of working anywhere and however you like. You can sit, lie down, and even do squats while working to grow that peach! But aside from being actually at home, you also have the luxury to work in that favorite cafe of yours, and even at a co-working space where you can meet new friends. You’re not restricted to work at your table in the middle of dozens of cubicles, n number of miles away from your house. You have complete flexibility of working anywhere as long as you have a laptop; and that the place you’ll work in has an electric socket, and a fast, stable wifi service.

5. Less overall stress

• Compared to the people working office-based, it’s possible that working home-based is less stressful since you won’t have to deal with people face to face. Minus how tiring the travel is to and from the area. This doesn’t mean that you’re exempted from having pressure with your tasks and projects though, because it’s still the same. This could be a pretty small factor, but stress can really be dangerous. It consumes you, and could lead to burn out. A little TMI: I got so stressed over a co-worker for weeks, and when he finally took his leave, it’s as if all the adrenaline drained out, and I fell ill. I had a pretty bad fever, my muscles ached, and… my period for that month got weird. I consulted an OBGYNE, and was told that the stress I experienced was probably the biggest factor among them all. It could cause hormonal imbalances. Would you believe that… even periods can be affected?! So I’m including this to the pros too, because it’s important to put your health first before work.

So this lifestyle really has both its pros and cons, and it’s most likely up to you to decide and conclude if it works with your personality and current situation. Personally, I’m very much enjoying the WFH life because I can really feel how much I’m growing and experimenting with myself. I’ve gone a really long, but uphill path up to where I am now, and I thank the home-based life, and my amazing team leader for that. The only time I feel conflicted with this lifestyle is when people insist and point out why I should find a new, and office-based job. Ironically though, the only people who point this out to me are my non-relatives and non-friends… I’m guessing that says a lot.

Thanks for taking the time to read! Hope you enjoyed this as much I enjoyed typing this down. :)

Keep growing xx