Yesterday I wrote an article about the benefits that you gain by working from your house, The Advantages of Working from Home. Today, I wanted to cover the benefits of working from an office, as there are quite many. Yes the price of gas and transportation has risen quite a bit in the past few years which has made it more cumbersome financially to go to work outside of your home, but there are certainly still some very powerful advantages that remain, so let me point them out:
The social factor
People that seek to work from home are not usually completely aware of how important this is. In an office, you are around people, you can speak, you can make friends, and you can socialize. This is a very important part of being an individual…we absolutely must socialize. Working from home, you don’t get to meet as many people and have a more abundant social life. Plus, I have met life long friends in offices I worked in, so you can’t deny how crucial this is to your life.
Higher motivation
Working in an office, it is much easier to get motivated to work. You have people around that ideally push you to do well and create a positive environment to work in. When you are alone at home, you need to be a special type of person that can motivate yourself, as it can be quite boring to work alone and this can destroy your motivation. Having worked on a sales floor, I can tell you that the motivation is much higher with people working next to each other than if everyone was working alone in a closed unit. It makes a huge difference.
Separate work from home life
We all have our own worries and issues to deal with at home. When you work in an office, you have the opportunity to go somewhere and forget about your home life for a few hours and get outside that “bubble”, which helps not only in healing but in getting a more logical perspective on the issues you may be dealing with. I find that you appreciate home much more when you are not constantly there, no matter how comfortable and convenient it might be. It’s important to disconnect, clear your mind, and change your thoughts. Working outside of your home provides you with this ability.
Less distractions
In my post about the advantages of working from home, I mentioned that working from home can increase productivity. This is in an ideal environment with a motivated individual that does not get affected by all the distractions around. Then, yes working from home can be more productive, since you are saving on commuting time and energy. However, we all have to agree in saying that there are many more distractions at home than in an office. It could be your spouse, kids, family, friends, and all the chores or tasks that you need to get done around your home. For this reason, working from an office will definitely provide you with less distractions, which will help you focus more and help your productivity in return.
Builds discipline
Having to wake up early, and being somewhere in particular each and every day will undoubtedly increase your discipline. You can’t afford to slack off and be lazy when you have someone or something to be accountable to. Working from home, you have the luxury of being all on your own and this can ironically be your own worst enemy. Building discipline is crucial to your life and important if you want to ever accomplish anything of value. Again, it takes a certain special type of person to be able to discipline themselves all on their own without having to answer to anyone. Such people certainly exist, and I am a living proof of that. But in reality, most people find it extremely hard to discipline themselves if left to their own devices, and this is why working in an office is an advantage since it forces you to be disciplined without giving you the option not to be.
I think the case has been made for either working from home or working from an office. There are huge benefits to each one. However, I feel that it comes down to the type of personality you are and what fits you better. For example, if you are a social butterfly, you will probably be miserable working from home. You would thrive in an office though. If you are more of a loner and someone that enjoys working alone, then you are a shoe-in for being a home-based worker. If your family is very important to you, and if your finances are a priority, working from home will provide you with such benefits. If you are more corporate and you are looking for advancement and greater career opportunities within the hierarchy of a corporation, then an office environment is definitely for you. So as you can see, it really comes down to what type of person you are and what you are looking for ๐
I must be one of those super-motived people, because I found each and every one of your so-called advantages of working in an office to be complete and utter hogwash (yes, I’m angry because the morons I work for pulled us all back into the office after 6-weeks of major productivity and happiness gains working from home).
I’ll briefly cover each of your headings.
1) The social factor
There’s no way to sugarcoat this: people suck, and the less I have to deal with them, the happier I am. The thought that we MUST socialize is itself socialized nonsense. I socialize with my wife, kids, and pets. Everyone else can stay away (unless you’re delivering a package. Then you can stay long enough to hand me my package before going on your merry way). Everyone in my office is less competent than I am, and they annoy me to no end.
2) Higher motivation
There is always lots of noise where I work, making it very difficult to get into the zone to create software. People coughing, sneezing, talking on the phone, whistling while they walk through the hallway, traffic outside the building, doors opening and slamming closed, etc. Working in the office sucks, Sucks, SUCKS for motivation.
3) Separate work from home life
Clock in at 8, clock out at 5. It’s not hard. It has always stymied me to understand how people claim difficulty with this. It’s extremely trivial, and I think you had to really stretch credulity to come up with this one.
4) Less distractions
You’ve got to be kidding. See my #2 above. My home office has a door and decent windows. I also run a box fan for white noise. Most of the time, I hear nothing but my thoughts and the soft purr of my keyboard. Even the occasions when my kids’ activities filter through to my ears, it’s like a warm blanket on a cold day. I get to be there while my kids grow, and it fills my cup.
5) Builds discipline
Again, this is complete and utter nonsense. If you don’t have the discipline to do your job at home, you don’t have the discipline to do your job at the office. Not only is getting ready for work easier when working from the home office (less stress about timing), but there’s a lot more flexibility about handling unusual circumstances. Maybe the dryer broke, and my clothes aren’t dry yet. I can still do my job while I schedule the repair.
I’m going to end with acknowledging that some masochistic people enjoy the company of others they otherwise wouldn’t give two rats’ posteriors about if not for having to be forced into the same breathing space by happenstance. I’m not one of those people. I’m an introvert. I get my energy from within, while those around me keep draining it like vampires.
The happiest phase of my entire working life was the nearly two months my county imposed quarantine. I had my wife, my kids, and my home office. Everyone else did their best to stay away. Life was perfect.
I agree with you all. Just if we have self-discipline all the time I think working from home is always more productive than any kind of workplace in all industries. But, yeah, working from home is a lot of fun and you have all the freedom when to work or hang out with your friends. Just keep in mind that โproductivityโ is always on top of everything while at work, make sure social media and other online distractions are set aside so you can put your focus on your tasks. Or better try using a time tracking software (like Time Doctor) it monitors your time and productivity.
I agree with you Cathy and Frederic ๐
Thank you for these articles and views. I am actually considering working in an office again. But upon weighing things, thanks to your articles, I am decided to keep working from home.
I enjoy the flexibility of time that I have right now, and since I had experienced working in the corporate world many times before, I have formed many social groups, that meet up with me on a regular basis.
All we really need is to discover for ourselves what can work best for us, and thus, productivity will just follow. ๐
Best regards,
Michelle V.
Hi Frederic
I agree not everyone is cut out to work from home. You must have self discipline and be a self starter..
Cheers
Cathy
Hi Cathy,
I totally understand what you mean, which is why I wrote the article The Advantages of Working From Home to show the other side of the coin as far as the differences with the office environment. Some people are definitely better suited to work at home, but I have known quite many that just could not do it.
best regards ๐
I do agree with most of this however I work from home and find that doing so I am less distracted, much more disciplined and actually more social. Once upon a time, I owned a business that had 23 employees and going to the office was like being in the middle of a soap opera. These days working from home I create social encounters by involvement in networking groups and scheduling more face time with clients. Where as when I was in the office all day everyday I was surrounded by the same people and the same drama and often times totally “land locked” there & could not get out of the office to “see” clients or seek new ones.
Working from home is not only more efficient but has done wonders for my “mental health”
Cheers
Cathy
I do agree with most of this however I work from home and find that doing so I am less distracted, much more disciplined and actually more social. Once upon a time, I owned a business that had 23 employees and going to the office was like being in the middle of a soap opera. These days working from home I create social encounters by involvement in networking groups and scheduling more face time with clients. Where as when I was in the office all day everyday I was surrounded by the same people and the same drama and often times totally “land locked” there & could not get out of the office to “see” clients or seek new ones.
Working from home is not only more efficient but has done wonders for my “mental health”
Cheers
Cathy