Ask Lemmy

You know those times at the office where things are slow so you walk the hallway or bullshit with colleagues or make a coffee run or spin in your chair?

You know what I'm doing during those times? Petting my dog. Making a sandwich. Pooping on my own toilet with three ply TP.

Different people like different things, I suppose. I don't miss the commute or the bullshit, but I do miss interacting with colleagues. And I'm pretty sure I haven't been promoted because I don't have enough face time with the bosses. All that to say I am mixed on it.

Feb 16 2020 was the last day I stepped into an office. The first person to die of COVID in the USA was not far from my office and HR sent everyone home.

At the time, I had a 1 year old son and watched his first steps over a small phone screen. Listen to him say his first word though my headset at work. I fucking hated it.

After COVID, I watched my son grow up and experience everything. From the highs and lows. I love it.

The major downside is that WFH jobs are very few and I had to quit multiple jobs because of RTO policies. Today, I opened a business and just work as a contractor. Even though I don't make as much, I wouldn't change it for the world.

I am like her, but I hate the commute and that my dogs are lonely. Some workplaces do work-from-home well, and most don't. So that may be part of her problem. Seems to work best at companies where they started and continue to be remote-only.

Yes. I had a hybrid position pre COVID that was 2/3 days a week home at alternating weeks, due to a lack of available desks in our office building. That was always nice when I worked from home. I enjoyed doing laundry during the day and being able to stop work and immediately get to switch off, as opposed to the days in office where I'd deal with driving home and traffic.

I switched to a fully in office job when Covid hit, and our office when fully remote. Other than training and onboarding, I haven't been required in office since. I love remote work. I won't go back unless I have absolutely no other choice

Nope, I am an IT guy, I live alone in my two room apartment, and I just can't focus on work when I am working at home.

Sometimes I have to, but it sucks

Yep - I always disliked having to figure out food for the day before heading into the office. I'm not ready to eat breakfast until closer to noon, but once I start eating, I want to snack every hour or two while working.

From home since epidemic started and I would want to hug covid if it was a person.

My productivity in office was always low. Too many distractions, too many inconveniences. Then there is an issue with getting to the office - it's an additional hour of my life they are not paying extra for. And of course - at home I can work while doing simple chores. But the most important is that I can be with my daughters, instead of being just another father that spends half a day at work and the other half sleeping.

Depends if you're an introvert or an extrovert. As an introvert I only see benefits; no commute, a close bathroom at all times, a kitchen with food, not needing to hear annoying coworkers except during meetings etc. If you're an extrovert then you might enjoy hearing your coworkers all day I guess?

Or if you have a toxic household you need to escape from.

I work remotely from a different country so I don't really have a choice but I'd show up to work 1-2 times per week because they offer free food and see the people I've been working with the past 4 years.

That being said, I love the fact I don't have to commute, chats and calls always have a main agenda but we also chat about games, movies etc. occasionally. I can work uninterrupted most of the day

Fully remote for years now and never want an on-site job again. I don't mind going for a couple of events a year, though.

I can take my "smoke break" to change loads of laundry or do something else around the house. I have no commute time nor expenses. I am always here for deliveries. I regained so much of my time that I can use for study or entertainment. (Assuming a 1-hour commute, even if most of that is on a train, that's 10 hours a week back from that alone).

For success, your company and you need to have good communication and planning. It's also not for everyone, especially more social people.

Yes. I have worked at both and I feel much more comfortable at home. It gives you a level of flexibility that is hard to describe. I can start my day early, take a break for an hour, and resume it when I feel I can give it the proper level of attention. When I was in office, there was a pressure to look like you're working all the time. It felt hard to concentrate when the expectation was on dedicating the expected time to work rather than getting something done. With WFH, it's more about getting your tasks done and generally no one cares when you do it. And I can slouch and prop my feet up and have videos/music/audiobooks playing and whatever else I want without anyone knowing, let alone caring. I don't need to worry about a commute, and all my food and comforts are available when I want them. I can easily handle things like being at home for a package delivery or a technician repairing something or walking the dog or just doing laundry.

That being said, I will admit it is considerably harder to get help with a task in office. You can't just have someone pop by to look at something for example. You can still do a call or message, but it's a bigger barrier to overcome. With WFH, collusion for a group more often needs to be scheduled, and you don't have an analogue for water cooler talk.

Many places that offer work from home also have an office somewhere, so I would recommend new employees go in while learning the ropes, then switch as they become more independent. And some people like having different locations to help switch between work and relaxation mentalities. And it can be nice to get out of the house too. But overall, WFH is much better for me.

WFH is awesome.

Can take breaks from work to drop off/pick up kid from school. Saving like 15% of my paycheque that would go to daycare otherwise.

Car insurance is cheaper, because no matter how much I drive I'm not commuting to work so the insurance company counts me as "occasional driver".

I can loudly and violently swear at bullshit emails.

I can listen to my own music on speakers while working.

Minor cons though:

I'm getting weirder due to the lack of minor social interactions that otherwise I'd get on the bus, sidewalk, office, cafe, so on.

Some cabin fever from being in the same space all day. I live in an apartment so I don't have a separate room for my work computer. Turn off work computer, turn on personal computer, and it's the same screens while I sit in the same chair. On the other hand this does motivate me to get outside after work to exercise or do errands.

Have done wfh full time for about 6 years now (since the rona), I would never go back to a full time or even hybrid role unless forced. I would sooner quit my job if they forced me into a hybrid position.

The freedom is so much greater and I get so much more done than when I do occasionally have to go into an office for meetups or workshops (maybe 5-6 times a year).

The style of working is different to that of being in office, you have to be self motivating, semi-solo problem solving and you need a reasonably quiet workspace. This can be hard to get in some situations so I feel very lucky to be able to do it.

The company also needs to be setup to promote and support remote working, so having regular check ins with people and making sure people have support in place should they need it. Plus policies that work for remote workers as opposed to in office workers.

13/10 would recommend.

Totally love WFH. I can hang out with my dog while working, get laundry done on breaks, and no commute leaves way more free time in my life. I would never go back to working in an office unless I was in dire straights.

It's alright.

I'm glad I can take my laptop and essentially work anywhere with a power outlet and an internet connection.

Oh, yeah, I've been self-employed from home for years. Go to bed when I want, wake up when I want. I usually get my work done before noon, and have the rest of the day. On the day of an event, I might put in 12-15 straight hours of hard work at a job site, but that's only once or twice a week, and it's actually the fun part of the job.

I don't miss office politics at all, and it only sounds like it's gotten far worse.

As an engineer, hybrid works best for many of us.

Design phase can be wfh with some in-person idea sessions or important meetings because I have yet to be at an online idea session that was as productive as in-person being able to draw things out and visualize better, and people tend to not speak up or just check out and agree at the end in online meetings.

Testing phase has to be mostly in person for lab tool access and collaboration on physical things.

I have worked with a contractor that did everything from home and had a whole home lab, but it was a big time sink and cost shipping parts back and forth 5 times and you couldn't physically probe behaviors together which leads to slightly different setups and sometimes different results.

Socially I moved to a place where I had no friends so I like getting social contact at work since in Belgium, it is extremely difficult to make new friends after you are done with school because of a culture of not talking to anyone else unless people are obnoxiously drunk lol. I like wfh on overwhelming days and in-person on days where I want more social contact.

That being said, I work 100% in office now because I live a 12 minute bike ride from work, so very easy.

I work part time from home and part time in office

Pros

• I can concentrate better at home (Open space in office)
• Save time driving to and from work
• My own toilet
• Family cat can hang out with me (if I deserve his attention)
• Can chill out on the couch/bed when taking a break
• My own internet connection

Cons

• Harder to get in touch with collegues
• When I work from home for a longer time period, I feel sometimes isolated.
• Various household tasks trhoughout the day, which breaks my concentration

I work from home for about 75% of my work. Today, I have to drive somewhere this morning, and then again somewhere this evening. I will spend in the realm of 2.5-3 hours in the car today. I do not get paid for travel. I will not be able to get in my daily run today. I probably won't see my kids after I drop them at school. I'll get home around 11pm tonight.

So yeah, I love wfh. But for the case of my job tonight, it's very good money, and not the perfect use case for remote (although certainly doable considering we did for years), and so I eat it, it's whatever. I generally have 7 or so jobs a month that I need to travel. Twice the commute is about 40m each way. The other five are 5-15m commutes so they're fine.

Single father with two school aged kids, mom lives in another state. I’ve turned down a couple higher paying executive roles that have been offered to me the last few years because I don’t know how I could make it work. I get my kids up at 7 and the latest one can’t be to school until 9. I have to start getting them from school at 3:30. I’m sure I could figure it out, plenty of people less fortunate than I am but I guess that I’ve decided that I’m incredibly fortunate that I can always be around and available for my kids and I don’t think I would disrupt that for any amount of money as long as I can provide for them this way. I do miss the social aspects of my colleagues sometimes though which really surprised me.

I love it. No commute, optional shower, no pants. I'm not a very big pants guy, and that's a huge seller.

Working from home, no commute, no clothes, no travel time, no car, easy food.

It's so efficient, it's crazy.

There is real value to working not-at-home, but working from home outweighs it in 99% of situations.

The reality is, and has been, and should be:

LISTEN TO AND TRUST PEOPLE WHEN THEY TELL YOU THEY LIKE OR DON'T LIKE SOMETHING.

I used to get overstimulated a lot at office jobs. Turns out I can prevent it just fine from home. For my own mental and physical health I’ll pick working from home any day of the week. Some meetings are more useful in person though, so I do go to the office for those.

I dont. My appartment is small. And i cant focus. I dont have a "hey i am at work" mindset. Because of that i take the way 1 ½ hours to work

Yes. Im way more efficient at home. Less offfice bullshit.

No commute or shitty weather.

Roll out of bed and online in seconds, just open the laptop lid, leave it in suspend.

My food and can cook a proper meal.

Also can throw on a wash or whatever during the day.

I'm liking it, in moderation. Just rolling out of bed, turning on my computer and making coffee on company time right away is very time efficient. It's also nice that I can work in peace and ignore coworkers whenever I need to.

The downside is that it's pretty annoying to collaborate on things, especially if it's with more than one person at a time. Gotta schedule a meeting, even if in person it would just be a thing of walking over and talking to them for 5mins.

My ideal mix is 4 days wfh : 1 day in-office. I get all the talking out of the way on that one day (plus it's enough socialization for the whole week) and the rest I just exist in peace.

I'd be honest. I'd personally love a dedicated WFH day(s) it's truly the best of both worlds

On ocassion yes.
But as you said it feels kinda lonely.
And I get really easily distracted. Last time I had a major side quest I did instead of doing my actual job.

Edit: And I have no office. I value my mental sanity by segregating my home/living space from my working place.

Love it! Clients have better accessibility; lose less of their days in commute, they are now able to see a niche professional state / nation wide, and I can charge 40% less in not having an office.

At the moment it seems like market forces are pushing me back to an office. I will pass the increased costs to consumers.

Yes. Cat.

Really one day I realized I rather eat lunch with my cats than any of my coworkers and have never looked back

People who socialize in the office hate wfh

People who socialize outside of the office love wfh

Depends on how busy I am. If I'm just sitting around waiting to hear from people or deal with shit as it occurs. Yea WFH is nice because I have more shit to occupy my downtime. If I'm busy and need to focus it sucks ass. Also it's nice to interact with the coworkers I actually like in person and I think it makes us get along a lot better and work more effectively. I don't know how many of my coworkers would agree though. All of them except one barely come into the office. It's just my opinion though I wouldn't try to force them in more.

I love it and I'm never going back.

• I save myself the commute (time, gas).
• In closer to my son's daycare, so it's easier to pick him up of something spontaneously comes up.
• I'm near my dog throughout the day.
• I have the fridge close to me. ;-)
• I can do the laundry or start the vacuum robot at convenient times.
• I have less interruptions by blergh people.
• I don't have to sit with my back towards the office door, which in turn was adjacent to the men's room.
• I can wear casual legwear.
• Better coffee.
• My three person office at work is empty anyway, because my colleagues commuted from further apart and are happy about WFH as well. So my options are a) sit alone in my office at home or b) sit alone in my office at work.
• I'm here for deliveries throughout the day.
• I don't have that loneliness/isolation issue going, but I do see that it's wildly different among people; some are made for WFH and some need the office to be happy.

EDIT to add, because it's an important factor and I read it in the answers:

• shitting on your own toilet, with proper toilet tissue, even through remote meetings.

I do a lot of telework and very little on-site work. Like 80% teleworking. I love the telework. I get to sleep 45 minutes later, don't have to get frustrated during my commute, save money on gas, have a discounted auto insurance rate, save on car maintenance, socialize with my coworkers over Teams (which is as much as I need to socialize with them), eat most of my meals with my wife who I enjoy spending time with. All the downtime at my job is now spent doing things like washing dishes, doing laundry, watching TV and movies, and reading, instead of listening to coworkers talk about inane stuff or having admin hover around micro- managing.

Yes, been 100% WFH since 2015. I do miss the random chats in hallways, lunch room, etc, but definitely not worth going back to an office. I am far more effective at home.

Unquestionably yes. My coffee doesn't taste like shit, and my PJs are far more comfortable than any office attire imaginable.

Your own toilet and good toilet paper instead of the cheapest waxy one-ply 🙏 your own control over the AC/heat instead of freezing/sweating 🙏 never having to smell someone heating up fish in the microwave 🙏

I'm 100% remote and love it

I need the home-work separation, or both suffer. I constantly get distracted from work with home stuff, and can't be fully present with family at home because I'm thinking about work.

No. I have ADHD and need external pressure to be productive.
Working from home in my job doesn't signal that pressure.
Most of the tasks that are assigned to me can always wait for another day.
So at home, I mostly just browse Feddit.
At work, I have people around me who can see my screen, and I can hear the issues my colleagues are having.
And since a day of fucking around makes me feel more exhausted at the end than a day working productively, I prefer going to the office.
The bicycle commute that wakes me up in the morning, releases stress in the evening, and keeps me fit, is a bonus.

I've been WFH since 2020, and it's working well for me.

There are some obvious benefits such as not having a commute, being able to do laundry during breaks and always being there when a package arrives.

Some maybe less obvious advantages I personally enjoy is being able to eat whenever, meaning a quick snack but also my lunch, and wearing less appealing but way more comfortable clothes.

Oh, and shitting in my own toilet. While getting paid for it. Definitely that.

I'm not gonna dismiss the potential challenges, though. It works well for me because I don't mind being alone and I'm lucky to have a spare room to use as an office. Without those two factors it could easily enter suck territory.

I love it because I bought everything I need to feel good in my office : a dock to switch easily between work and personal computers, a standup desk, many things to reduce back, neck and shoulder pain too. I have a wall painted that I can look at when I need to have a break. I don't have transport, so I wake up 15mn before work starts. There is no noise. When I feel I can work less without feeling tracked : as long as I get my work done in time, there's no issue. I can take breaks to do some house-related tasks (tho I don't take breaks lately, but I could do it).

I could not go back to any job requiring me to go to the office.