Thing you do when you WFH...

[SleepDebt]

...that you'd never do in the office.

My DH was shaving his beard In-between emails this week and it made me chuckle at the thought of him doing this in the office.

What things do you do while you WFH that would be completely inappropriate/slightly hilarious if you did them in the office?

Fart. I fart all day long

and eat - which is probably why I fart so much

I put a wash on in a toilet break, empty it in another, hang it at lunch.

nothing that exciting

Depressingly little beyond working! I do have grand ideas/ambitions of actually taking my lunch break and using it productively to get stuff done around the home, but it's rare that I have either the time or the motivation. I always overestimate just how much I can achieve in a lunch break too.

I do try and get washing done and hung out/brought inside, if the weather allows, but not much other than that as a regular thing.

I do a Lucy Wyndham Read workout on silent whilst listening to briefing

Get dressed while logging on.
Leave my hair in a mask and rinse at lunch.
Laundry/dishwasher
Take a nap at lunch
No bra or socks or shoes.
Make a hot lunch sometimes

We very rarely have camera on meetings. Not much point as there will usually be a doc on screen to go through.

I'm not jealous at all 🙄

It is true on both accounts that yes employers struggle to recruit , and staff don't always get replaced.

I can see now, though, why when I've gone through all the information needed in a presentation, I still get emails from numpties asking questions about stuff I have literally gone through in detail, with full instructions!

I've also been to the gym, done a quick shop, and attended medical appointments!

Those aren't really things you wouldn't do if you worked in an office.
Staff should be granted time off to attend medical appointments.
Going to the gym or popping to the shops can be done during breaks.

But I couldn't go to the gym and have lunch if I was in the office.its either one or the other and wfh I do both.
Plus, I'm a locum worker, so if I was in the office, I wouldn't get paid if I attend medical appointments.

Whilst I agree with you, don’t they say whenever someone comes up to you in the office with a ‘quick question’ you not only have to deal with that, it then takes a while to get back into what you were doing once they’re gone. If you get rid of those sorts of distractions then actually, you probably get more concentrated sections of work time even if it seems like people are working less.

Fair enough.

It's absolutely true that people can use whatever work environment they're in to take the piss, if they're so minded. I should know, the amount of time wasting I've managed when office based. I refuse to believe that anyone who has worked in an office hasn't encountered this behaviour either.

There's a double standard though, in that we don't hear nearly as much about people using other workplace environments to skive. Only wfh.

If I don't need to have the camera/mic on, I sometimes listen and match on the spot to get my steps up.

No it's not.

Reasons

1/. Client meetings via teams. Clients are corporate bods, so actually being smartly dressed is an expectation.

2/. For some people, e.g. me, it's a marker I'm working, not a day off. It focuses my brain correctly.

3/. I like to look smart. What's wrong with that? I don't feel productive in my "comfies" and I'd see a notable drop in output.

So I dress the same as I would going into the office e.g. shirt and trousers/dress etc.

Be less presumptive and judgy.

I agree that WFH is more productive for lots of people, even accounting for these chores. The time I used to spend chatting to colleagues or nipping out for coffee I now spend doing housework or having lunch with my child. I'm still productive but lots of people work better if they've had little breaks.

Lots of my job does involve talking on the phone and I can do this while prepping dinner with the information in front of me on a laptop. Loads of people work better when they're moving anyway.

I work for my dh who has a successful business. Works for us around dcs.

I often have a lunchtime bath and wash my hair.

I watch a lot of tv.

There is absolutely nothing about my WFH behaviour that would be appropriate for the office.

I don't wear a bra.

I don't wash or brush my hair.

I spend hours and hours on MN.

I spend hours and hours on ebay and Vinted.

I wear old, stained clothes.

I do household chores in between tasks.

I spend most of meetings doing middle fingers and V-signs whenever my twatty colleagues start talking (with camera off).

I have half-hour natters about absolutely nothing to DP whenever I'm bored.

I do The Times puzzles during meetings.

I think you've misunderstood the word "need" here.

I'm so jealous of your WFH jobs!

Yep.

Those things are all specific to the poster concerned. I can see that the client one might be a need if you have both client meetings and some expectation of particular dress, which is going to be a minority of workers on any given day. But other than that it's personal choices. Nothing wrong at all with that choice obviously, but don't claim it's something it isn't.

I mean, this thread does make me feel vindicated in insisting on cameras on for meetings

Today I have barely found time to nip to the loo never mind anything else. But most of my meetings I have to be a very active participant

I am wearing PJ bottoms with my smart top though! Perfect for horrible period related bloating.

And I am propped up against lots of cushions because of my neuro-muscular disorder, but no one can tell thanks to the teams background

I have zero issue with anyone else wanting to look smart. It is the idea that you need to be dressed smart to work well that is bullshit. I wear baggy comfortable trousers when wfh. Why would wearing a smart skirt, dress or trousers make me work better? It would not, I would just feel less comfortable.
I do not think I will ever go back to work in an office with a dress code.

We were talking about us as individuals.

For me, my attire is a "need".

So my point stands.

No I get that entirely. Just like I'd never go back to a job that has certain requirements. We all have our own personal requirements.

My office is a mix of the corporate t-shirt and smart casual. So if I'm in the actual office, I'm likely to be in smart trousers, a blouse and trainers 🤣.
My colleague wears absolute whompers of heals, which I could never do, but it fits her...

Strokes for folks.

Yes , no-ones doing themselves any favours on this thread.