Author: Ondrej Kriz
Publication date: 25.07.2024
The concept of the Home Office was a distant dream for many of us, accessible only to those who are lucky to be self-employed. However, the vision of working distantly from our living rooms, wearing pajamas instead of a work uniform, and the comfort of skipping the usual morning beauty routines to look good in front of our coworkers, had become a reality for the majority of us when the Covid-19 pandemic paralyzed the world in early 2020. The mandatory Home Office, which did not include only the working places, but also schools, universities, and other institutions, lasted for about two years. But since the pandemic ended and all social restrictions were lifted, thousands of companies around the world decided to stick with the pandemic working model and allow their employees to work from home.
A Revolution in the Working Schedule:
According to research conducted by Microsoft, since the lockdown moved all businesses to operate online, the standard working schedule notably shifted from the conventional 9-5 to The Triple Peak Day. Triple Peak stands for the three main waves of productivity during the working day. Before lunch, after lunch, and before bedtime. The Pre-Covid 9-5 working day only consisted of two, meaning that a larger amount of work needed to be done in a shorter period. The so-called Triple Peak Day, emerging during the lockdown, enabled people to multitask during the day, devoting their time to families, house chores, or hobbies, with people usually coming back to work duties toward the end of the day. In an article published by the Microsoft newsletter, Mary Czerwinski, research manager at Microsoft in the field of Human Understanding and Empathy, praised the flexibility of the triple-peak working hours and pointed out its positive impacts on mental health. However, there are also some downsides worth mentioning. There is a risk that, with poor time management, employees will end up working the whole day, which would inevitably lead to burnout. The Triple Peak Day and the whole concept of Home Office may be, therefore, in the upcoming years, more suitable for those who are not employed in the public sector or for more independent professions, if companies decide to stick with the hybrid or online mode. But why was this relatively new trend perpetuated, and what are its positive and negative aspects?
Pros:
1) Flexible hours:
Working from home allows people to adjust their working hours according to their needs. This leaves some space for much-needed self-care time. Whether this encompasses a time for hobbies, or family and friends, the home office enables employees to organize their day and effectively include working duties and leisure activities for which there was little space before. Online professionals are, therefore, more in charge of their time.
2) Money saving:
Working from home significantly reduces financial expenses, not only for employees but for employers as well. Global Workplace Analytics states that almost 60 percent of employers economically benefit from an online mode. Similarly, according to a Bankrate survey from 2021, 57 percent of employees noticed a reduction in spending since working from home. Whereas businesses and companies conserve money by not having to pay the utilities, cleaning services, security costs, and potentially food expenses, online workers save up on commuting, clothes, car utilities, or food.
3) A locational flexibility:
Working online enables people to work from a distance, whether this means from the same city where the company resides, or from a different part of the world. Due to modern technologies, working from home turned an unattainable dream into reality. This enables companies to hire people from all across the globe, which means that employees from countries with weaker economies can land a job abroad and receive a higher income than in their home nations. It also strongly benefits digital nomads or people who are both permanently and temporarily traveling. WFH also facilitates the lifes of workers who live in the same area in which their company is based, as they save money for commuting or rent.
Cons:
4) Isolation and a lack of personal interaction:
The idea of working from the comfort of one's home is not, however, for everybody. Everyday in-personal contact, whether with a friend or a stranger, is proven to have a significant influence on our life's quality and well-being. The peril of working online a hundred percent of the time is that we may miss out on the only human interaction we could have had that day, which inevitably impacts our mental and physical health in the long run. It also prevents the company from creating a close-knit working collective and a team spirit, which therefore causes employees to have a lower regard for the company's values.
5) Ever-present Distractions:
Although numerous surveys show that productivity levels tend to go up during a home office due to factors like calmer work conditions and flexibility, working from home also brings some distractions we do not usually face in the office. Whether it is a lack of discipline or other family members and roommates, some people have difficulties keeping focus if they are not in the working environment, surrounded by other employees.
6) Lack of a Routine:
For some, routine is a bogeyman and a prelude to a burnout. However, for others, it may be a key to a focused and organized life. Some people have trouble managing their time effectively and need a firm structure to achieve productive results. A Very-well Mind article from 2022 points out that "Implementing a structure to your day can give you a sense of control. It can also improve your focus, organization, and productivity." The firm time of the end of the work shift also helps to determine the end of the working duties and starts the part of the day during which the individual is free to pursue one's interests or other commitments.
Whether Work From Home is a revolutionary concept, a far-distant dream turned reality, or just another COVID-19 measurement that managed to stick in society even years after the pandemic ended, is probably on each of us to decide. While there are numerous benefits to the so-called home office, it also comes with its downsides, which made millions of people pleased to put back on a company uniform and return to their office after the pandemic allowed to world to come back to “normal".
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