Since the world has been exposed to a pandemic, the daily routine for many individuals
have been altered. As we surpassed the two-year mark for Covid-19, society has tried to find a
“new norm.” Working from home has easily become one on the greatest lingering changes in our
daily lives as companies were left with no choice but to adapt.
This shift in the new work environment called home seems to be favored by employees and jobseekers. Employers also benefit and in many cases, create a happy medium through hybrid arrangements.
Despite its favorability, will working from home slowly dwindle overtime or is it here to stay?
It may seem pretty pointless going over the infinite and obvious pros to working from
home but as an advocate, I would like to emphasize further it.
Firstly, the convenience of it all is superb. Time and money is saved by just being home and not having to wake up early to get ready and commute.
To be more specific, less work clothes to wash, more sleep and spending less money on gas and meal prepping. I usually wake up 15 minutes prior to my shift working from home but on a day to the office, it is 2 hours. We can say goodbye to making sure we go to bed early to wake up early and sit in traffic.
Furthermore, families can easily juggle priorities such as childcare and school. Some people have even completely cut out the need for childcare, further aiding to reducing their financial expenses.
Work for some can take away from what means the most; this time has been regained through the option of working from home. Despite having such wonderful effects, this new shift can have its downside as well.
The biggest issue posed by working from home is one’s productivity.
Just like an office, a home can be filled with many distractions. This can range from children to pets. Additionality, people can unfortunately take advantage of company time and use it for personal things such as cooking, lounging, sleeping and extracurricular activity.
With this presence of potential decline in productivity comes micromanagement. The micromanaging is done unconsciously by companies but serves as a purposeful measure to combat unproductivity from employees and keep company objectives afloat.
Unfortunately, this can have the potential to create tension, something only associated with in person working. Aside from this, let’s not forget about technical issues. Working from home can bring along issues with Wi-Fi and malfunctioning work equipment which can be a pain.
A major con to working at home that is overlooked is its impact on one’s mental state.
I can recall a conversation I had with a coworker who chose to work in office simply due to the need for human interaction. That was something. Human interaction is not an essential requirement to function for me as it may be for some. This notion broadened my perspective on mental health, something that effects millions differently.
The work environment and team culture disappear as solitude increases.
Luckily, a hybrid option is a great solution, having employees rotate working at home and in person.
The pandemic caused havoc on the world, but some unforeseen changes have had a positive impact on society, such as working from home. Is this change here to stay or will the saying “all good things must come to an end” be conveyed in the future?