Anyone else fed up with WFH/Hybrid

[HelenIU]

I’m looking to turn this into a WFH’rs are lucky/lazy/work shy sort of thread.

But genuinely interested if anyone who is WFH/Hybrid feels similar and has any words of wisdom:

-WFH in Covid which turned into Hybrid post lockdown ending (2x a week in office, 3 days at home)

I feel utterly fed up at home, miss the interaction and just genuinely long for how things were before Covid - in the office each day part of a big and supportive team. Even when I’m in the office it’s not the same with desk booking and not everyone in.

I finished work yesterday and just felt unfulfilled.

Has anyone been in this situation and seeked a full time non WFH job? Did it work out or did you regret it?

If you have a job where you record time in 6 minute units and have a chargeable hours target, you're very much targeted on the amount of recordable work you do each day.

We don't have time to hang around having a coffee, or networking, as those chargeable hours won't do themselves!

I much prefer working from home, but thankfully we only have 1 mandated day in the office a week (our team is on a Tuesday). I think all of us suffer, rather than enjoy, that day in the office!

I do have loads of Teams calls with colleagues who need assistance though, so just because we're at home, doesn't mean we're unavailable.

Bold opening sentence, OP!

Im the same.

Bored
Sluggish
Problem with snacking
Sick of the sight of my house
No Friday feeling
Less motivation
Miss my colleagues, even the annoying ones
Miss having a reason to get properly dressed and feel attractive
Miss seeing more of the outside world

But I’m locked into a place where it works with school/nursery drop offs, lack of commuting costs et.

@NoWordForFluffy Thst makes sense. But to be as efficient and productive as you can be in those six minute blocks, surely you need to have laid the groundwork. So established decent relationships with colleagues so you can collaborate effectively, been available to answer questions from new colleagues as they learn the ropes, etc.

I know it all sounds quite abstract and a nice to have, but I do think these things are essential. And sometimes an inperson chat over coffee is exactly what is needed. For example last week I had a long conversation with a colleague who is recently back from maternity leave and struggling to work out what work pattern works for her. Having been in a similar position to her a few years back I was able to have an honest and informal chat with her. That wouldn’t really have worked well on Teams.

I get dressed, do makeup, hair etc etc as if I’m going in anyway as it makes me feel better (not to mention even more productive, for some reason). As for the socialising/seeing the outside world, could you schedule some lunch/brunch dates? I find this helps too. Totally agree with it working for childcare.

To be honest, i have more issue created by working at home
When I was in the office, I used to just be able to swan around with a piece of paper in my hand looking as if I’m on the way to something important. Hide in the back office on a apparent phone call for six hours.
Breaking only for a nice lunch to pop round M&S or House of Fraser
Most days I’d set up a couple of hours of out of the office meetings, so I could be at any number of glamorous locations around the country again, having lunch.

Absolutely zero accountability, no particular outcomes measured, lots of expenses.

I was living the dream.
Working from home, buggered that right up

We don't often need to collaborate, to be honest. We very much work alone, other than asking a question / getting a sense check every now and then (for which Teams is fine).

I'm available on Teams for people who have questions, as are the other people I work with.

I've changed jobs twice since Covid, and I can't say I've had any issues with getting to know my team members / building good relationships, even when we've never met in person before. I could've easily had a similar conversation you did via Teams and it work well, so it's clearly about what works for individuals.

The majority of my team (and the business in general) is hybrid although some roles have to be onsite 5 days a week. Some members of my team choose to be in 5 days as they prefer it. What I find interesting is those people who are missing the being able to ‘pop and ask a question’ who don’t seem to realise how disruptive that can be to those who have to deeply concentrate. Now I’m sure folks on here will say “they can tell me to come back later” but in real life people don’t do that, they hover/lurk/keep talking until you’ve got no choice other than to answer them and bam! there goes the flow of concentration that has been built up. I need hybrid to be able to get any actual work done, days in the office are just lost to people walking up and interrupting me

I WFH for many years as a freelancer, this was way before it got fashionable with Covid. I liked the ease of it and I worked really well on my own but oh, the sadness I used to feel at sitting on my own and no banter and nobody to bounce ideas off. And I know it sounds awful and shallow but I really, really missed picking out nice office clothes and getting my make up on and hair all polished.

Hybrid suits me perfectly. Was WFH full time when I physically couldn't access the office and found that more opportunities were being given to those who could. Things I hadn't even heard mentioned.

Out of sight out of mind so long as you're doing what you should be.

I work hybrid 3/5 in the office and I'm loving it, I would not want to work from home full time, but I get so much more work done at home, both work and housework on my lunch, my work life balance is so much better now, but to add, my children are teens and I no longer do school runs either.

It sounds like you rely heavily on work for social contact. Can you build out more opportunities for that outside the office? Spend more time with family/friends, join a sports team

I much prefer going into the office and only wfh one day a week although have the flexibility to wfh 2 days a week if I would prefer.

Did you forget a not there in the first sentence..?

Personally I love wfh, it works well for me. No issue being in the office when there’s a need or reason, but my 1 day mandated office day now is me sat at a desk on the same teams calls I would be at home just not able to have full conversations in case something sensitive is overheard (no meeting rooms or quiet spaces because of everyone books them for the same reasons!).

it doesn’t work for all jobs or people and that’s fine. Where it does work I think we just need to stop the hysterics.

i’ll caveat with, as an AuDHDer I find offices massively stressful and the physical toll just isn’t something I’m willing to accept. I’d been hybrid from well before Covid.

Nah.
I moved from a 100% office based role to fully remote about 7 months ago and I think this is me done for the next 35 years.

We have weekly teams meetings where we sit and chat about anything but work for an hour and a lively teams chat to stay connected.

I have plenty of friends outside of work and the nature of my work is very individual as a rule. I don’t miss the time and money spent on commuting. I can walk the dog at lunch. For the first time in my adult life, I don’t feel like I’m tip toeing on the edge of burnout.

I am also an introvert and love my own space!

You need a hobby.
People at work are not your friends. Work is not your support network.

That supportive team will only last as long as it suits everyone.
At the next reorganisation, it’s everyone for themselves - nobody will care if you have been “friends “. when promotions come around, nobody will care. When redundancies cone around, nobody will care (the people who make the decision won’t even know you exist - all they have is a spreadsheet).
Its good to be “friendly “ with people at work, but dangerous to confuse that either being friends.

Just to point out that, as a lone working parent, I wouldn’t have had time or childcare to join a sports team etc. I did have reasonably flexible hours, but also relied on holiday clubs etc. I notice that holiday clubs, in my area anyway, are now few and far between, as most people seem to park their kids on the tablet while they work.
Ironically the supposed increased flexibility for women of wfh seems to have reduced other options.
I don’t need childcare now, so obviously can have hobbies, but I spend a lot of time working so would prefer it to be less lonely personally.

Also, I have really good friends I have made in various jobs along the way. People I no longer work with but are still very much in my life. I really don’t see how it’s possible to build those friendships now, thru a screen on Teams.

I love wfh!
No money wasted on horrid work clothes, no presenteeism, able to do drop off and pick up, and use agile/flex to attend kids' events.

I've no desire to socialise with work colleagues.

Sorry OP, I feel quite the opposite. I hate going into the office, even when it’s full. Actually I hate it even more when it’s full and get a third of the work done than I would at home.

I am hybrid, but there is no coordination whatsoever between who is in when. Last time I went in I had happened to select the desk next to the CEO, but I haven't seen a member of my team in person in six months.

I would much prefer it to be a lower/random frequency of hybrid so long as it was coordinated to actually see my team more often.

As a disabled person, having companies now allowing you to wfh is a blessing for me. It means I can work, have some social interaction even if it’s just via teams and have a purpose in life.

I love wfh and hate going into the office, have zero need for social interaction with colleagues and find it much harder to my job. Hot desks never seem to function as well as at home and are never set up properly. Massively resent the extroverts who like to suck up others people energy saying we must all be in several days a week, so we can meet their needs at the expense of our own. There are plenty of companies and jobs which mandate you have to be 'on-site' - go work for one of them.

I have friendships like that, built on Teams. It is possible!