How many articles have you read over the past few months about working from home learns? Or problems. Or predictions.
I’ve been self-employed and working from home for almost ten years. I should know all about its benefits, all the tips and tricks. Yet, it hasn’t really felt that rosy.
To cheer me up, I started collating my favourite learns from all the articles out there. And why not share them, eh? So read on and laugh. Or cry. It might depend on the day you’re having.
1. We like the benefits of working from home
Trust me, I know all about the advantages and disadvantages of working from home. I’ve juggled and failed to juggle at various times. When (practically) the entire world was relegated to working from home last year the thing that struck me was how many benefits we all noticed.
Yeah, there are some big downers to the whole being crammed into one building for work, play and everything in between for months. But there are great reasons to work from home too, and we like the good parts. Don’t we?
2. Homelife and work-life is blurred
But then there’s this one. I mean isn’t it just one big blur of work, childcare (if you’re a parent) and leisure? Whatever that looks like these days.
I had to “ha” out loud when I read an article from Forbes last year, talking about this blurred line being part of the “new normal.” It went on to say how smartphones are now dubbed the “adult pacifier.”
More than ever, these digital devices are also the way we stay hooked into our workplaces. So, we all walk around, operating outside office hours to respond to emails, probably while simultaneously changing a baby’s nappy or cooking dinner (don’t get the two mixed up.)
And have we got better at this as the months have gone on? For my part, I would say I have good and bad weeks. So, on the whole, probably not!
3. Everyone hates Zoom calls
I like the story my husband tells about setting up the first lockdown Zoom call with his friends. Everyone was sort of, “yeah, that could work.” Now, everybody, but everybody has tried video calls of some kind to chat with friends, family and colleagues.
And how many of us love it? I might be blinkered here, but I think, not many. I admit video calls are truly amazing in the way they’ve busted some longstanding myths around how we conduct business.
I mean, yes to cutting down on unnecessary travel and employing the right person for the job wherever they’re based because remote working feels so achievable now. This has been one of the big benefits of working from home. But boo to Zoom fatigue and the feeling of being a participant, rather than part of an actual human conversation.
4. I have back problems all the time
I like to think I’m a healthy(ish) person. I do yoga. I try and take care of my posture. Honestly, years of carrying babies and toddlers haven’t done my shoulders any favours, but I was muddling through that.
Skip to March 2020 and me and my husband are sharing my at-home desk in shifts. Which means one of us at any time is trying to work in a wicker chair in a kid’s bedroom. Or on a stool in the kitchen. Not good for the old shoulder pain, and this has to be one of the major challenges of working from home.
Even though I try to do all the right things to avoid it, I was told (during what felt like a minute-long lockdown reprieve in December) after a massage I’d booked that my shoulder was, “really, really bad.” I mean, I’m not even sure what to do with that info.
5. Nice workspaces do matter
While we’re on the subject, back and shoulder ailments aside, actual research shows us that nice workspaces have quite an impact on biggies like motivation and productivity.
Now, while we’re all hotdesking in our own homes, there’s only so much we can do, unless we want to turn our houses into capsule offices. That said, a few tweaks are possible. Speaking for myself, a new pot plant and pen holder can make quite a difference. And yes, I am being serious.
6. We are all better at juggling everything than we think
Are you feeling bummed out by the time we’ve reached the end? Well, here’s a little positive note to end things.
There have been so many articles over the past year on how much we are all struggling. The reports on parents not coping with work and childcare. The loneliness and isolation people are feeling. We’ve all experienced things like this to some degree.
But I’ve also noticed this. People are inclined to be self-critical. On the whole. In general. I think it’s amazing how well everyone has coped. If you’d told me a year ago and all this would happen over the next twelve months, I would never believe I could do what I’ve done. And that goes for everyone.
We are coping better than we think. We are doing better than we believe. And we are achieving things we never thought were possible.