I live in the Indian Silicon Valley and working from home (WFH) is as usual as getting a pop corn while watching a movie. Well, at least for the techies in this city, it is. So I thought I should dig deep and understand how working from home really works! Hmmmm or does it really? Lets find out.
Recently Marissa Mayer became the CEO at Yahoo! and among the many firsts that she did, she banned work from home for everyone at Yahoo! across the globe. Here’s an excerpt of the memo that was circulated to all employees:
“Beginning in June, we’re asking all employees with work-from-home arrangements to work in Yahoo! offices. If this impacts you, your management has already been in touch with next steps. And, for the rest of us who occasionally have to stay home for the cable guy, please use your best judgment in the spirit of collaboration. Being a Yahoo isn’t just about your day-to-day job, it is about the interactions and experiences that are only possible in our offices”
Recently Marissa Mayer became the CEO at Yahoo! and among the many firsts that she did, she banned work from home for everyone at Yahoo! across the globe. Here’s an excerpt of the memo that was circulated to all employees:
“Beginning in June, we’re asking all employees with work-from-home arrangements to work in Yahoo! offices. If this impacts you, your management has already been in touch with next steps. And, for the rest of us who occasionally have to stay home for the cable guy, please use your best judgment in the spirit of collaboration. Being a Yahoo isn’t just about your day-to-day job, it is about the interactions and experiences that are only possible in our offices”
Back to my point: Unless you are a person whose work revolves around being on the internet or on phone or not being connected from the outside world at all or has nothing to do with regular meetings (internal and external), WFH more or less should work. But in the Indian context, more often than not productivity may go for a toss.
But having said that, when your usual 10 km commute to office starts eating up 90 minutes of your productive time, anyone would naturally start contemplating the WFH thought! Wouldn’t you? Especially when that crucial 8am to 10am primetime (of being most productive) is gone in doing mundane activity like standing in a public transport bus, siting in an auto or driving your own vehicle. Irritation will kill you and then that leads your day to go worse from bad. When you reach office you have no motivation, you take time stabilizing your hyper tensed mind, drink a lot of caffeine, make few phone called to your wife/ family/ close friends and tell them how screwed up this city is and how you predict the city coming to a stand still in a few years from now, you also talk about your experience with your colleagues and infuse negative energy in turn and of course waste their time too, etc.
With so much of traffic in the city, reaching office does not seem like an enjoyable event, hence the birth of work from home. Do not waste precious and productive time travelling and then wasting time in office instead work from home and get more done. Sounds great. But is it that simple as it sounds?
WFH would be most productive when you have these things sorted out, lets look at these 11 considerations:
WFH would be most productive when you have these things sorted out, lets look at these 11 considerations:
1. First things first, do you even have a workable table and chair at home from where you plan to WFH? Since working from bed, carpet, sofa, balcony, easy chair, recliner will not lead you to give your best.
2. Do you have a stable internet connection at home? WiFi? Dongle?
3. Your breakfast, lunch, tea, snacks, water has to been looked out for? Or do you plan to cook each of these meals/ snacks yourself?
4. Do you have other family members who also stay full day at home? Do you have to look after them, constantly?
5. Do you have an access to a separate room (where you have point# 1) from where you can work?
6. Are you disciplined enough to follow an office work schedule and ensure you are not taking bath during office timings? Since you are at home, you can do whatever you can, whenever you can.
6. Are you disciplined enough to follow an office work schedule and ensure you are not taking bath during office timings? Since you are at home, you can do whatever you can, whenever you can.
7. Are you working from home because you have some household chores to be completed? Like, waiting for the LPG cylinder to arrive (they generally do not give a date and if you miss their arrival, you might get into a long loop. Unless you have taken their paid service of Saturday or preferred delivery only) or getting your bathroom tap repaired and the plumber gave a time of Tuesday 11am only or you have your family members coming in from somewhere and you do not want them to see a locked door etc.
8. Or you are working from home just so that you get to sleep for that beautiful one hour, after a heavy lunch.
9. Have you tried this before? Has it worked? Were you able to get more work done?
10. Are you ok with no luxury of the usual turn around and chat with the person sitting behind you. Are you ok with no gossip at the coffee machine/ Dinning/ Water cooler area. You are ok with not meeting anyone or chatting with anyone face to face for the full day?
11. Is your boss ok with this arrangement?
Answer these simple questions and you would know if you are good to go for a work from home culture/ habit/ routine. Of course, only when your office allows you to even consider it, that it.
8. Or you are working from home just so that you get to sleep for that beautiful one hour, after a heavy lunch.
9. Have you tried this before? Has it worked? Were you able to get more work done?
10. Are you ok with no luxury of the usual turn around and chat with the person sitting behind you. Are you ok with no gossip at the coffee machine/ Dinning/ Water cooler area. You are ok with not meeting anyone or chatting with anyone face to face for the full day?
11. Is your boss ok with this arrangement?
Answer these simple questions and you would know if you are good to go for a work from home culture/ habit/ routine. Of course, only when your office allows you to even consider it, that it.
Agree or not, hope you like what you read 🙂 I would love to hear your thoughts, please leave a comment below or feel free to write to me at adi@perfios.com
Candid and matter-of-fact'ly article Adi!
Well said!
– Pradnya
thank you thank you 🙂 now get back to work from home! :):)