WFH - advantages and disadvantages?

[DaveB]

I was soooo happy when they told me on my current gig I could wfh Fridays if I wanted to. Now I hardly ever do, generally only when I'm having something repaired/delivered.

Too many distractions. I was taking sneaky looks at 'Don't get Done, Get Dom' , constantly checking out what was the in fridge (same thing that was in there 10 minutes ago) and reading the Mail Online.

It's a side of me I'm not proud of, so I'm better off in the office.

Admitting you have a problem is the first step to fixing it

[BolshieBastard]

Kinell, this place really has turned into mumsnet.

[hydraulicwave]

I work from home two weeks out of three. Much less stress, even if I am really busy I don't feel as pressured as when I'm sitting in the office.

[d000hg]

You can always try to find a local venue offering co-working facilities if you find physically being out of the house is helpful.

I infrequently even go and work in a pub with a few people I know - mixture of students and freelancers.

[darrylmg]

I sometimes WFH.
Dedicated office space and nice kit.
Love working at home on those cold, dark, wet winter days.
Only downside I've found is you do get a bit excluded from the general office banter and more importantly, you sometimes get missed from quick emergency meetings about major issues.
Thus I've been trying to fix something when the whole system just gets dropped from under me with no warning.
I also hate the IM question overload, because people can't see you, they think you're only chatting to them, except you're not, you've got 5 people asking you stuff all at once, and you're not getting your own work done.

Apart from that, it's brill.

[NotAllThere]

Perhaps thats why my mrs is moaning. Knows she'll have to do her duty!

If you were doing it right, she'd be moaning while she does her duty.

As you get older though, what you really value about working from home is the afternoon nap...

[psychocandy]

If you were doing it right, she'd be moaning while she does her duty.

As you get older though, what you really value about working from home is the afternoon nap...

No-one even mentioned jeremy kyle yet!

[d000hg]

I've been WFH for the last 4.5 years and love it. Compared with staying away a week at a time in hotels, it's a complete no-brainer for me.

The points about interruptions at home are valid, but I bet I'd have got even more interruptions working in an office (e.g. chats about what was on the box last night).

Some people ask whether I'm lonely, but my role entails many calls per day and loads of IMing, so I never feel that I'm isolated.

The flexibility is great. I do sometimes do the laundry or load the dish washer while waiting for the kettle to brew or take a couple of hours for lunch, but then I'm still checking e-mails etc into the evening, so it evens out. As long as the work gets done, the client is happy.

Long may it continue, as far as I am concerned, especially with the proposed travel expenses issue.

Very similar situation here. There's not many of us around although there are a few... may I ask what area you work in and how you go about getting work as a "professional WFH-er"?

[VectraMan]

+1

I made a point of going to the gym twice a week at lunch times when I was on full time home working gigs.

I should probably do that. When I WFH'd before over a summer I'd go for a bike ride for an hour every day.

[d000hg]

I used to swim but found by the time I'd walked into town and back, swum and changed, I was losing 1.5 hours for a 30min swim.