Be honest… what do you really do if working from home?

[Wffhh]

Just that really.

I often have a bath at lunchtime. Go to shops. Clean. Last Friday watched a Christmas film in the background in bed while doing some online training. Made a pie.

Sometimes I have to work very late. Sometimes on a weekend. So I think it balances out. Anyone else be honest? Do you ever have almost a day off doing life admin?

people always trot out this crap. I've been wfh since 2020 and nobody has ever mentioned any drop in my productivity, nor in anyone else's. Our case numbers have in fact increased year on year which suggests people are working harder or at least more efficiently at home, even if the way it's structured isn't the same.

There was research far before WFH became a thing that showed most people only actually actively "worked" 3-4 hours a day in office jobs, the rest of the time was spent faffing around, travelling to places, chatting to colleagues, staring into the distance, going to unnecessary meetings, playing on their phones, whatever. I used to 'waste' up to 8 hours a day driving to different places, the vast majority of which have now become online meetings so that has freed up huge amounts of time.

In answer to OP, I wouldn't ever leave the house (i.e. do a shop or go to the gym) when logged in as 'working' - not to say I don't do these things during the day but we have complete flexi time so I would log out and then back in again if I wasn't going to be available at all. But I work for an hour, spend 10 mins putting the washing on. Work for an hour spend 10 mins pegging washing out. Meeting for an hour then spend ten minutes faffing on my phone. Work for half an hour then spend 10 mins on MN. etc. So no I don't work flat out, no stops, during the day, but, as above, I didn't do that when I was in the office either. Get excellent yearly reviews and am the best performer in my department so doesn't seem to be an issue.

Skiving in the office doesn't excuse skiving when working form home.

Chatting isn’t skiving though is it. Imagine a workplace where you weren’t allowed to talk to colleagues. Unless you’re leaving your desk for a long chat elsewhere

I'm referring to duration of breaks. Where the OP is really describing taking most of a work day as breaks.

Er...work!
Same as if I'd work in the office. On my unpaid lunch break I'll go for a walk or put a wash on.

I work, the only things I do that I don’t do in the office are letting the dog out for a wee and answering the door. I do eat during our daily briefing (on mute!) as I don’t take any breaks on a work from home day so I can finish earlier.

My encourages movement (health charity), and we're encouraged to get up and move every hour (you can even copy a company stretch/movement reminder calendar). In training meetings they encourage you to listen on the move.

I work 7.30-4 mostly, 4 days per week, with about 4 hours done in the evening to add flex.

I attend meetings on the move, I get up, I do the dishes, I do "planning walks" in the park.

I do cracking work for the company. They're plenty happy with my output.

I work really hard and find it easier to focus. Yes, I feel free to step away from work and have a nap if I want to. I even feel free to tell my boss, so she knows why I'm not available for a while. Thankfully I work in a team where we are treated like grown ups and trusted to manage our workloads and time appropriately! My manager has my eternal loyalty and it has transformed my life as I have finally been able to move into a management role despite being a single parent of two children. I've just worked through chemotherapy for primary breast cancer and got a promotion too! Thank goodness work is no longer designed exclusively around the idea of a ”default male” who can work full time with no outside responsibilities to get in the way!

Yes I understand but I’m curious to know if you think it’s acceptable for her to do those things in her break. I doubt she’s doing all those things every single day

I’ve wfh entire adult life, I basically just work, at lunch I will do a workout or have a bath. I normally have some videos or music on in the background for some background noise as I struggle to concentrate when it’s pure silence.

Take a bath? 😳

Yes the online training with the tests at the end are usually tricky if you haven't watched the video.

@fivebyfivebuffy only you can change that! I certainly wouldn't be working from home on minimum wage - if you are they should be paying an allowance for internet/heating etc. we are offered this but I don't claim it.

I do nap during my lunch hour sometimes if I’m very tired but I don’t think I could have a bath when WFH, that a pre-bedtime activity for me!

I'm assuming you meant your DH gets his best ideas on the ride on mower 😂
If it's not a typo I want the name of your dog trainer!

But yes, lots of people on here don't seem to get the concept that many professions aren't a set 9-5 switch on/switch off situation. Yes I sometimes do personal stuff in work time - but I also end up thinking about work stuff in personal time - i.e. I go for a walk on my lunch break and end up planning through how I'm going to structure the report I then write in the afternoon, or go to an exhibition on the weekend and see some ideas we could use in work for our own outreach so spend 5 minutes making notes/sending myself an email as a reminder - I don't 'back log' that time as work time!

Whatever I want as long as the job gets finished. I can do it at 1pm or 1am nobody cares. I don’t have to deal with customers or clients. Just here’s today’s work. Ok cool. Here’s the work done.

Oh I really hope @Chipsahoy does have a lawn mowing dog. 🐶

It sounds like fully checking out.

Ours let you keep going back and refreshing it doesn’t care how many times you take and it doesn’t hold it against you. Normally just some health and safety refresher anyway.

Well, the post I was quoting said
working in the office was lots of chatter and making tea!
which I read as more or less the same as your 'leaving your desk for a long chat elsewhere' (while making tea)

It's a reasonable adjustment for my disability so I can't really change it
I can go in but it means obviously being up earlier and home later so more fatigue
I don't have the heating on generally at home though when I'm working unless it's below 16c so it doesn't cost me much

My internet is what I have always paid

I am fortunate in that I have a great degree of flexibility in my job. I WFH most of the time, and am measured on results as opposed to working hours. I tend to start my day about an hour before my contracted time, focussing on anything that must be completed that day.

I think it's important and healthy to get up from the desk quite often, so I'll go and put a wash on, tidy a room etc at intervals. I tend to take about 90 mins at lunchtime for errands, then go back to my desk. I don't really know why some people seem so cross that WFH allows for both productivity and domesticity.

I spent today WFH from bed. Saves putting the heating on
I still answered all relevant emails etc.
For Zoom.meetings I don't put the camera on

I do my job.
Yes, I'll do so in tracksuit bottoms and no make up. Yes, I'll take a few minutes while boiling the kettle to load/unload the dishwasher and I'll use my lunch break to clean the bathroom or run around with the hoover.
But mostly I sit at my desk, or sometimes on the sofa is it's an informal call, and get on with exactly the same work I'd do in the office

I work.

The big difference is less interruptions so I get things done more efficiently and eat a healthier lunch.

We have to have Teams switched on and the little indicator light turns yellow if you haven't typed anything for 5 minutes.
We could also get video calls at any time so taking them in the bath would be a bit unprofessional 😁