Work from home, work for home

On Holi, some of my relatives invited me over. That was the time when I was working for a Hyderabad-based website, from home. When I was telling them how less leaves I had that year, one aunt quipped, “You get leaves? Isn’t work from home like a leave only?” I was fuming and you can understand why.

Work for home is an excellent option, before you all start feeling that I’m all against it. But then, there’s also another side of it that we hardly explore. Let’s first get started with what all it offers, the good part of it, that is.

 

Sunny side up

So, you get to wake up a little later compared to the ones who have to rush to work. Then you get to pace your day out. More importantly, you have the luxury of avoiding the peak hour traffic rush, you don’t have to snatch that prized seat or wait for someone to get up in the crowded bus. Or for that matter, wait for an auto or bargain the living daylights out of your system.

An additional benefit would be not having to choose outfits, which, mind you, can be quite a bit of an effort. You can work in your pajamas, without taking a shower, if I may add. You can multitask, if you’re good at it and even extend your work hours, if required.

 

The err…not sunny side

The biggest disadvantage of work from home is people very conveniently assume that that it’s a paid vacation. Let me tell you that it’s not!

As someone who has been working from home for a while now, I have always been apprehensive of one thing — will my bosses ever feel that I am bunking? Even though I have always been sincere, yet, this thought has always consumed me.

The third source of problem is the fact that work from home can breed a lot of depression. Being at home day in and day out in front of the laptop can instill a sense of loneliness and instill depression deep in the system of the person.

It also makes it difficult for you to switch on and switch off.

 

Therefore, if you’re someone who works from home, maintain a good balance between personal and professional lives. Have a separate space for work at home and switch off as soon as you step out. G out on off days and socialise a lot.