5 min read · Jan 4, 2025
Thought the first blog this year would be my first unemployment blog, but fine, the dark forces didnât let that happen and I live with it. #Smile in pain.
Iâve been in corporate for about 13â14 months now, with 5 of those months being remote on an average. Reflecting on my work-from-home experience, it feels like Iâve gained some expertise in this domain, so sharing some gyan.. Lelo bhai †Free hi hai!
Like everything else, WFH has its own set of pros and cons. I planned to make a table with 2 columns, WFH and WFO in bold, italic and underlined, like a 5 marks comparison question, for which I need 10 points, but you know my brainâs capacity, itâs limited. So going forward with this format.
Questionable Family Time
WFH allows you to see your family multiple times a day at least, when I say multiple times, I meant 2 â3 times for 20â30 secs when you go for breakfast, lunch, dinner. You canât have food with them because working session meetings with food are already scheduled.
Home-Cooked Meals
She makes you avoid the Swiggy, Zomato overpriced food options, forcibly opting for nutritious, home-cooked meals. Because if you skip meals at home, your mom will skip you. And if you eat outside for no reason, you will be outside forever for a reason.đ¶âđ«ïž
Closer to Family in Emergencies
Without the headache of long commutes or wallet-draining travel, you can be there for your family during emergencies. Come on, guys, we all know weâre not much help, but stillâŠ.showing up counts okay! Farz banta hai!đ
Flexibility and Comfort
At home, you can take short breaks, stick to your bed like a starfish when needed, of course with your laptop. And generally create a so-called more ergonomic workspace just in your pov.
Saving on Travel Time and Costs
You skip the daily commute just like you skip physical exerciseâsaving hours of travel and expenses. Sure, rent savings might be a myth, I actually didnât save much, at least weâre not stuck in traffic contemplating life choices! đ
Increased Productivity in Some Aspects
You can dodge those soul-draining meetings that couldâve been a two-line email and actually focus on workâwithout the office distractions of birthday claps, random fire drills, or n hours townhall meetings just to know that there would be no hike this year after working your ass off.đ
Home body Lifestyle
With no commute or office movement, physical activity drops, leading to health issues. The time saved from commuting gets eaten up by a non-existent work-life balance, and the cost saved is spent later on MRI scans for your back and a lifetime supply of Vitamin D and B12.
Blurred Work-Life Boundaries
Employers often assume that being home means youâre always available, extending working hours beyond unreasonable limits. While the team is out enjoying a carefree lunch or dinner, guess who has to do the teamâs work? Yep, thatâs right, the ones working from home that day. I can assure, did that many times.đ #Justice for Equality.
Social Isolation
Lack of personal interaction at home can make work feel lonely and artificial. You miss office lunches, casual chats, and celebrationsâbecause whatâs the point of lunch without complaining about meetings? Watching your colleagues, you realize youâre not alone in this rat race. That gives you a sense of relief đ.
The âHelpâ Wait Game
Getting quick help in WFH? Itâs like waiting for a text back from your crushâpainfully slowđ. Personally, I think calling on phone is a bit unprofessional, but there were and are times Iâd wake up in the early morning when my team calls. Yep, their calls slowly turned into my alarm clock. Instant support in the office? That was a luxuryâat home, itâs more like a video buffering, you never know. đ
Professional Growth and Office Politics
Personal interactions often play a significant role in professional development. Walking in the corridor you can just accidentally meet your companyâs big shots. WFH might restrict opportunities for networking, mentorship, and spontaneous learning. If you are WFH, you donât know whatâs happening behind your back, obviously you canât see whatâs behind your backđ . But trust me in office you will get the hints.
Toxic Work Culture Remains
Regardless of the setting, some workplaces maintain unhealthy practices, such as overloading employees or fostering guilt for not delivering on time. Planning wrong project deadlines and on top of that smashing the entire project team in the long run for company projects, itself is not a very positive growth-oriented way.
A lot of WFH experience depends on your project, team, luck, and work culture. If youâre in a great work environment, where you feel supported, it doesnât matter where you work from. But if your work-life balance is in shambles, you need to figure out what works best for you.
People often say, âItâs not the job, itâs you, who didnât set boundaries at first.â F*ck that, itâs not true. You never know when your managerâs manager will call you on a Saturday morning to threaten about your ratings. When you will get fired, hired, or promoted. Anything is possible in Indian IT.
PS: BTW that expert is me. đ
Both WFH and WFO have their upsides and downsides. Ultimately, itâs about your personal prioritiesâfamily time, professional growth, or lifestyle. However, regardless, a supportive work culture is vital to ensure a healthy balance between life and work.
The world is not ending and there will be a tomorrow always, not sure we will be there. Come on champ, we gotta better things to do today.
OK now comes my favourite part, Song Suggestion.
âTake Yourself Homeâ by Troye Sivan. Also since anyways you are free, listen to âIâm so tired of love songsâ by Troye Sivan and LAUV as well. MA bouy is just tired of everything just like me.â€
Ending this blog at 2:00 AM, on time babe, 4th Jan 2025. My sleep cycle crying in a corner. đ€đ
I will try to be consistent with my blogs, so my self-esteem can at least allow me to beg you for claps and comments. đđ
Bibye, Gunnite. Happy new year Everyone. đ„ł