WFH is it all it’s cracked up to be?

[jinn2025]

Hi all,
Ive worked in a very fast paced job for 9 years, recently 2 kids later and a partner who works away 5 days a week. I’m staring to think, is it better to find a job working from home?
would I be lonely? I could do all the boring jobs like washing, cleaning and running the house on lunch and while I work? Gym on a lunch break?
there’s alot of pros but also some cons.
For anyone whose made the change please let me know, how you’ve found it?

Depends on your job. My DP and I renovated our whole house while WFH. We did what we needed to work-wise and had no complaints from our employers but probably only did an hours work a day.

I would hate it so much. It sounds like being retired which I would also hate, I’m saying that so you know that I’m not normal 😂

I mean I get time to do a few odd things like pop a wash on and load the dishwasher, but I wouldn't have time to do all my chores and admin as I have work to do! This is what gives WFH a bad name and I think why a lot of managers (mine included) is reluctant to move to fully remote. I actually prefer hybrid as I like the social element, but then my office is only 10 min drive away and we have flexi start/finish times.

My FIL has dropped by several times thinking we can just spare all morning for a cuppa and a chat with him, he often refers to it as being 'off work'!!

I love the pros and don't like the cons! 😜

Pros:

• Can easily pop out of the office to put a wash on/take advantage of hanging laundry up on a sunny day/empty the dishwasher etc. In an office building I'd have popped to a colleagues desk to have a work chat which would have had a bit of chat chat tagged on, or would have had a chat in the kitchen when making a coffee or whatever so I see these micro breaks away from my desk as no different to that. You're really not meant to just sit at a desk for 8 hours without movement breaks. DH often does little bits with his headset on whilst on work calls. He has one call a week with his team where they all try to go out for a walk during the call, which is honestly a lovely notion!
• total control over the thermostat and noise levels
• easier to focus without the distractions which often come from working with others
• No commuting time so maximising work/family time
• I've been ill way less since not being in an air con infused building filled with other people
• saving money on fuel/public transport (though mostly I used to cycle so this one wasn't so strong for me)
• feel like I can take breaks when I need them without people asking where I'm going. Used to have a colleague who genuinely kept track of how many times others left their desk to go to the loo/get a drink etc. I don't miss that at all!

• totally flexible working (for me). This morning I was up at 5 and thinking about work so I just started. Got my usual hours in by 1pm. Think if I'd had to be commuting to an office I'd have probably laid in bed reading till it was time to get up 😂

Cons

• DH and I both at home all day every day, can be quite stifling/monotonous. The kids on the other hand are out all day, so on the weekends we have an energy mismatch. They want time to veg at home, we want to go out.and about.
• no 'water cooler chats' with the team, it's surprising how much gets sorted in side line conversations. Can be quite isolating without them.
• My step count/exercise levels are dire on WFH days. I move a lot less compared to being in an office building. Because I'm trying to maximise the number of hours I can work whilst the children are at school I don't often have the capacity to go for a walk or work out during the day, so am still fitting it into evenings like I would have done in an office job.
• increased heating and water bills
• work/life boundaries are easily blurred (way too easy to pop back on during the evening for example). We're both lucky that we don't have teams who expect this from us but I know others who don't have that luxury.
• neither of us have a WFH budget so had to buy the desks, chairs, additional monitors etc ourselves. Just something to consider in terms of set up costs. I also had to provide my own laptop.

There was a poster on here the other day that said she would never have sex while wfh either as ‘that’s wrong’

Like that takes about 10 mins, everyone is entitled to breaks!! That’s the law.😂

I know there are different kinds of job, but mine has a seemingly bottomless pool of work, so im
absolutely putting the effort and hours in.

I know there’s a sort of tabloid narrative around WFH skivers, and I sometimes wonder this is supported using planted posts etc. online.

I teach and can do it from home on Teams but hate teams and much prefer the classroom, it's much easier to connect with learners. I still do some admin at home.I would not want to work full-time from home, I like home and work to be kept separate.

I've been WFH for over 6 years so also with a toddler during covid and can't imagine going into an office anymore.

It really depends on the company but we've got a lot of flexibility so there's no problem me doing the school run at whatever time.

I wouldn't be able to get the flexibility, salary and be able to work the hours I do in in-person job so that's why I wouldn't change.

Yup, agree with all of these.

If you've got flexible(ish) hours, it works well with your body clock too. I'm an early riser so start most days before 7am, don't think that would work in a physical office.

The physical con is a hard one. 6 meetings today and did a grand total of 1500 steps 🫨 I have a walking pad and electric lifting desk so I could've easily done 12k in the meetings but I was in lazy period mode.

It’s excellent, I literally don’t have a bad thing to say about it.

If you’re mega introverted and have your social needs me elsewhere or like me autistic and hate office environments then yes it can work fabulously. It’s allowed me to work more hours and for more years than my other disability would have allowed otherwise.

If your social needs are met at work and you are mega extroverted etc - probably not gonna work for you.

I find it is best to have lots of activities on the go at once, so that it is difficult for anyone to keep track of what you are actually doing.
Also, if you have a good reputation of being hardworking and talented then you can get away with doing very little.

My work/life balance is literally thriving due to WFH. I do two days in the office (usually Monday&Tuesday just to get them out of the way) and 3 at home. I never spend weekends doing housework, usually get it done when I’m at home as I can pop a wash on, keep up with the tidiness/cleanliness of the house and on Fridays I try to have a good cheeky house clean. All my work gets done, no one micromanages me and it means I can also do school runs. I’m just about to go on maternity leave to have my 2nd child and it’s been a godsend being able to be at home and rest a bit more whilst working.

Same. I have chronic fatigue and autism and struggled SO much being in an office. I’d get
overwhelmed by noise and temperature, couldn’t focus, and my commute absolutely exhausted me. My health broke down completely in 2013 and I had to stop working altogether for a year.

I’ve been wfh since 2017 and I’m so much happier, healthier and more productive. I’ll happily work late when I need to, as I know I can eat and relax immediately when I’m done. No 90-minute commute between me and my pjs!

As someone else said, routine is important, as is breaking up the day. I go for a walk first thing, before I start work, do the housework at lunchtime, then shower when I’m finished work. That tells my body it’s time to relax.

I love it, and given the choice, I’ll never work in an office again. I feel very lucky that I live in an age where employers are starting to realise we all need different working environments to be productive.

I absolutely hate it!
My MH seriously suffers.

I need the structure of waking up, getting ready, the commute, my colleagues etc

It sounds weird but I enjoy going into work and people being excited to see me, being able to help my colleagues, laughing, venting and seeing the good that I’ve done that day.
My role is very client- facing and that interaction with my clients is what I love.

I need the separation of work and home.
My home is my sanctuary where I feel calm, safe and happy but WFH meant that I was becoming stressed at home.

I gave up a job for a lower paid, higher stressed one simply because my job became remote.

BUT I had more time to go to the gym and shopping etc.
I had a better social life, as I wasn’t so tired in the evening and had more time to get ready etc.
In the same time that it usually takes me to commute, I would easily be able to get all of my chores done and go to the gym. I could also cook from scratch.
It was also easier to get appointments.

So my non- working hours were genuinely non-working, I had much more free time.

Physically I was healthier.
Mentally I was not.
Ultimately, my mental health decline impacted my physical health in the end.

Depending on your age, you could just try it.
You’ll probably find you love it for the first 6 months but after that you may not enjoy it as much.

A couple replies have said it suits people with autism but I’ve found the opposite with quite a few people.

It really is so individual and I don’t know if you’ll ever be able to tell unless you try it for yourself.

As PPs have said, a hybrid role is probably ideal.

Yes to all of that.

Ive wfh for 8 years. Im a single parent & it’s been fantastic. My employer is very flexible.

I did have a while when I got a bit lonely & isolated around Covid etc. but now I get out of the house to the beach, for coffee and exercise most days.

I do like being at home. Having a nice small separate home office makes all the difference too. Keeps things a bit separate.

Good luck.

I wfh in my late 20s pre kids and found it really lonely and isolating especially as I was the only on in my team who wfh full time so was forgotten about.

Now I wfh full time with an amazing remote team and it is so well structured I really feel part of things, our team is so well managed I never feel alone or isolated nothing but supported but with all the great bits of wfh.

genuinely love my job

It's the goat. It really is.

No commute. No shitty lunches out of Tupperware. No dreadful commute. More time doing what I want. More efficient at work. Fewer distractions.

Lifesaver

Of course you can.

desk workers need to get up and stretch/ walk around every hour. I get all laundry done while working easily plus other bits & bobs. I’m not doing a full house clean in the working day but absolutely lots of jobs in small bursts is possible.

Two major positives for me on top of what everyone else has said -

I’m 55 so I’ve had 30 years of getting up at 6am to commute on tubes and trains in dark cold winter months. Now I get up at 8am, have my breakfast in front of the TV and start work when it’s always light.

I have much more flexibility to use annual leave for actual breaks. Before I’d have to take a day off to wait for a workman or important delivery or medical appointment. I’d say it’s given me about an extra week off a year because I don’t have to that.

I do agree with bubble's cons listed above, but to me these are manageable in exchange for WFH.

There is an energy mismatch with the kids especially. But not enough for me to do a three hour commute five days a week 😂

WFH was a game changer for me.

After commuting into the office all my life, we were allowed to WFH for 2yrs during & after Covid.
Work did not suffer in the slightest and apart from the usual one or two who took the micky (which was to be expected if you knew them), I am convinced that more work was done and certainly the workforce was a lot happier. Without the need to catch buses, trains etc we would stay on call if necessary or complete a piece of work rather than rush for the door.
It saved the commute and during the day, meant I could take Ddogs out for a walk in my lunch break rather than in the evening.
When we were told we had to start a phased return to the office, I realised I just didn't want to do that anymore so too kearly retirement instead. Best thing I ever did.

Just to add.
When WFH there was no balancing a laptop on the coffee table or taking over the dining table, my home office was fully equipped with triple screens, desks & chair plus I had excellent FF BB so no connectivity issues.

WFH has been life-changing for me in reducing this kind of stress, rushing around for pick-ups and trying to wrap up work quickly to get out of the door. I am so much happier and more productive at work. It took me a while to get used to going back to the office hybrid after Covid. Now I go in to the office two days a week, sometimes 3, and I like the mix. I find the interaction with people in the office is good for quickly solving issues, and for maintaining social connections. I now feel I need a bit of both set-ups for productivity. My focus and output is way higher at home however.

It made me fat and boring. Plus the house gets messier when you are home all day.
I slept way worse, as work was literally in my house, so felt like, mentally, I couldn’t remove myself from it.
I like the separation of work and home, I don’t want to spend my lunch break doing laundry.
I like a bit of the unexpected- bumping into someone I like, seeing a bit of the world out there and not only my own 4 walls.
I like wearing nice clothes and seeing what other people are wearing.
Never again!