How is almost everybody physically able to WFH?

[someladdersandsnakes]

This is something I just don't really get. I work at a company which doesn't pay that well in a city where housing is very expensive but still basically everybody has somewhere at home that they can work every day. I currently have an office at home because it's a 3 bed and I'm now expecting our second child, when the baby arrives it won't be physically possible anymore to do regular WFH because the only place will be the dining table in the front room, only really suitable for occasional use because there isn't enough space around it for a proper office chair or anything. Nobody else at my company seems to have a similar problem though. I thought appropriately sized housing was a major societal problem yet somehow since the pandemic everyone has a suitable permanent workspace in their house? Including families, young renters, people still living with their parents, etc.

I work in our loft. Works really well for me.

I would also be happy to work at the dining table downstairs.

I use the dumping ground "playroom"

I love that setup, it looks very neat.

I use my kitchen table.

We have four bedrooms as we did a loft conversion 20 years ago. DS1 (23) is in the loft which has an office area in the awkward corner space next to the en-suite area. Quite a big desk and 2 screens, but he usually only works from home on Fridays. DH is in the small bedroom which is the home office - he’s there almost all week. Big desk with 3 screens. I have an office at work but if I’m working at home as I often do it’s the dining room table for me and my MacBook. DS2 is doing GCSEs - he’s in the back bedroom with a desk. We got through lockdown quite easily but we know how lucky we are to have the space.

I have a 65m2 one bedroom flat. I have a good sized kitchen for the size of the flat and have a table for 6 people so I can always have one space as my desk.
I have an office chair I picked up on the street for free and put a new cover on.

I have colleagues who also work at the dining table, but some of them have to clear their things every day for dinner. One colleague uses the dressing table in her bedroom.

The only time I did WFH was when I got pinged during lockdown. At the time I lived in a small one bed house with no space for desk or table, so sat on my bed! I was in agony.

I now live in a different house and we do have a small table in the lounge that I could use. Fortunately I hate WFH so always commute to the office!😁

It’s strange to call it a ‘physical impossibility’. All you really need is a laptop and a surface. I work from my bed, sofa, dining table, wherever. A desk can be shoved anywhere in a home. Some people don’t like that, for most people it’s fine.

"Someone who only needs a laptop can work from anywhere. "

Nobody only needs a laptop. You should always also have a keyboard and mouse otherwise it's unhealthy.

I work in the conservatory. A room with a view.

I work at the kitchen breakfast bar

I don't see the problem with the dining table if you have an office chair and the height of it is OK.
There's also no more need to snack at home than in the office or not take proper breaks.
Snacking is actually worse in our office because people keep bringing things in.

I'm hybrid an I have a desk & office chair in my bedroom. I got rid of furniture to accommodate it, but it has the smallest footprint possible while still complying with my employer's workstation regs.

I use a laptop which is docked when at my desk, but I often move to other rooms and use a lap desk or a table.

It also helps that I work paper free so very little to pack away at the end of the day.

I've walked to work in many jobs and was never the only one doing it.
Also, when you take public transport there is some walking. I do think losing an active commute is bad for many people's health.
Most people also rack up many more steps at work than at home.

I do know people who use their previous commute time for structured exercise, but I think many of us prefer the 'natural' way of moving that a walking or public transport commute provides.

I work in bed with a laptop on my lap.

A one bed house with no table? How did you eat?

Some of us were older when the pandemic started and lived in bigger houses.
We bought our house 20 years ago and specifically bought this one because it has an office as DH has worked from home for over 20 years. We also don't live near family so we bought a 4 bed so that we could accommodate them when they come to stay.

I have converted one of the spare bedrooms into an office, and the set up works extremely well. I need two widescreen monitors as well as my laptop, mouse, headset and full sized keyboard, so working at the dining room table isn't an option.

Smallish desk in corner of our bedroom. Blurred background for teams calls. Proper ergonomic chair.

We are fortunate that our house already allowed for us to have 2 home office working spaces. Having a kitchen/diner the separate dining room is now my husbands office and the 4th bedroom is my office.

They probably regretted it as soon as heating prices tripled!

That's what we did as well. It's so nice to have a dedicated space that we can close the door on at the end of the working day. We have space for 2 desks so if we're both wfh on the same day we share the office

We have a home office. There are 4 of us in a 4 bed. So we have a spare room for an office. Most people I know do have a spare room/office setup.

I have similar. I set it up by our lounge window. I feel I need a bigger screen but have nowhere to put it when the desk goes away though. DH doesn’t like the desk being out but I only wfh one day a week so it works for now

At the risk of sounding like the Daily Mail, this thread just shows the future health problems being stored up that are going to hit a whole generation of people in middle/old age, who have spent large parts of their youth working from home on beds, sofas and even kitchen and dining room chairs. Ergonomically this is so, so bad for you, not to mention the exercise lost by just sitting in your house.

I am not a WFH fan, as you can tell. 😂

I like to work from my kitchen on a laptop. Easy access to the kettle and fridge between meetings!