Now more than ever, you are hearing about successful people who have parlayed their job titles and careers into the growing “Work From Home” demographic. While the idea may sound alluring, it has been said that of the growing 250,000 folks who currently work from home only 5% actually keep their efficiency levels up to what they were when they worked in an office. Why is that?
Working from home is a fairly new phenomenon, in the grand scale. With the advent of the internet, PDAs, Bluetooth and other modern technology it has become only logical to cut out the need for congregated employment. Here are some benefits to working at home, some obvious, some you may not have thought of:
1. You become a “satellite office” or some other subsidiary division of the main office. This allows you to refer to your work residence in these official terms since communication, payroll, and workload are all sent there from the parent office. When meeting modern clients, you can refer to your home office in these terms. Try configuring your office name around the geographical relationship to the main office. Example: You work in San Diego, but the company headquarters is in Houston, TX. You could refer to your home office as the Western Region office or the Western Division office. This also gives an illusion of having a greater, more powerful employer than may actually be the case. This is ok. Your quality of work will back up the grandeur.
2. Your persona goes from affiliate/colleague/employee to Supervisor/Manager/Boss. Your attitude should also reflect this. You must now create your own guidelines and rules for your new office/home. Your buddy Mike has the day off on Tuesdays. Do you respond to his calls to go play golf or do you let him know what you can and cannot do? It is imperative that your personal contacts and friends are hip to your new rules of the house. No more phone calls during working hours…and no “stopping by” unless it is an emergency. It is hard to impose these sanctions on your good friends and peers, but they will eventually respect that you have something greater going on than taking that impromptu fishing trip to Mexico.
3. If you serene retain an off-site supervisor or boss (most of you will) you will notice a change in their attitude as well. You will start to hear things like…”I’m sure you’ll knock that project out in time” or “Let me know when you wrap up those final stages” instead of being poked and prodded along the device for constant progress reports. To truly reap the benefits of this new stance, it would behoove you to make good on your promises. You are out of your supervisor’s glimpse…not their mind.
4. No more commuting to work. Now you TeleCommute. Your MPG just went through the roof! Seriously though, we all are enlightened enough to know the many reasons why getting off of the roads is immense for our health, our finances, for other people, and for the earth in general. No need to go over that one again.
5. No more meddlesome, 50-something year old female coworkers going to your supervisors after every little error you make. No more interns trying to clone everything about you, even down to the shoes. No more whining about days off and who is covering who’s shift or whatever. The only drama you can now be sucked into is…..er…wait… Nevermind. That schoolyard stuff is finally gone and you won’t ever gaze back.
6. Wear whatever the hell you want. (this one is kinda tricky, though) Any good worker from home will still attach on a good button down shirt or even a tie with slacks. Try it yourself. Your efficiency sees a boost and you’re not even cognizant of it. It’s that same principle that makes you stand with a bit better posture when you have that new tuxedo on or that new dress for the prom. Our presentation undoubtedly affects our mannerisms. That being said, there is still something gratifying about being able to wear your Butthole Surfers T-shirt from college with a pair of holey sweatpants once in a blue moon and nobody being the wiser.
7. Set your possess hours. Depending on the job title, one can expect to have limited real-time interaction with the parent office/ headquarters or even be essentially “plugged into them” throughout the day. It varies. If you are able to make your own hours, it is essential to keep right to a regimen and stick to it. Keep your schedule alterations to a minimum. Take off on Thursday morning to run errands, it’s ok. Honest perform sure you are making it up on the other end. You have to work some on the weekends to hedge against any loss of time throughout the week.
8. You can personalize your office to better suit your individual needs. I personally recommend a respectable 4-drawer filing cabinet and to invest in a good desk and chair. If you spend on one important item only it should be the desk/chair combo. This is your captain’s seat! Splurging in this setup will pay dividends in the future, similar to the “glad I bought it” feeling folks get after buying a good bed and mattress. Your quality of work, organization, and attention to detail will see a positive spike when you make your office classy and customized to your work.
9. Mandatory meetings, seminars and office parties are a thing of the past now! No more distractions! No more getting interrupted just as you were locked into “The Zone” and on the proverbial roll. No more “having to be somewhere”! Actually check that. I forgot about the task list that’s beeping about paying the electric bill. And the webinar I need to attend at 1pm. Oh yeah, and that flashing Yahoo messages that keep popping up from my slight sister while she’s bored at work. And those damn conference calls. Maybe I’m wrong about never getting interrupted again, but there is something sweet about not having to hear the CFO go on about his latest “buzz word” to get us hyped up for increased output. Or being forced to party with someone you already loathe from work.
10. YOU ARE YOUR OWN BOSS. This one is really a summary of elements from this blog, more than a separate line item, but what the heck. Whether or not this is truly the case is irrelevant. We all acknowledge to somebody in the ruin. What is well-known is your degree of motivation, positivity, resilience, and effort that will dictate whether or not you are slit out to be someone who can effectively work from their own residence. After all, being our own boss is what we are striving for in all aspects of life, is it not?
So does this sound like it could be for you? If it is, the only thing you need to do now is find that employer that will allow you to work from home! There are many out there on the internet to find. Try typing in Reverse-Funnel Method and see what comes up. Also companies like Liberty League International are always accepting current motivated individuals to join their team. If Liberty League International is too fast paced for you, there are also opportunities on sites like CraigsList for cease at home employment.
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