The Benefits of Working from Home
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about exactly why working from home is so important to me, and the benefits to myself and to my clients. The reasons I do it, and my own benefits, may not be the same as someone else’s. But I think these are general enough to reflect a majority of situations, not just for those in freelance or contract positions, but also for those telecommuting on a salaried position.
I believe that nearly all benefits are mutual to both sides, at least indirectly. An employer may not care one way or another if, for instance, having a private bathroom is important to me. But if it makes me more comfortable, then it makes me a better and more productive worker, and that is a measurable benefit for the employer.
I do want to point out that I don’t have a complete perspective on this - for instance, I’ve never been in the employer role in a telecommute arrangement. But I do speak from experience; I have been freelancing since 1998. But I should also point out that I’m an introvert and this is written from my perspective; many of these benefits might be outweighed by the sheer energy that extroverts enjoy when in the company of others.
Comfort
This is a pretty general concept, so I wanted to mention it first. A lot of the benefits you’ve already heard about can be lumped in here. There might not be a lot of telecommuters out there that literally work in their pajamas, but if you’re most comfortable in your pajamas then it’s a benefit. I firmly believe that the more comfortable you are, the less distractions you face and the better your concentration. If your mind wonders to "these heels are so uncomfortable" or "I wish I could lose the tie" every five or ten minutes, that’s a disruption. Comfort leads to efficiency.
I couldn’t list all of the benefits that falls under Worker Comfort if I tried, because it’s based on very personal preferences. Which is why telecommuter comfort should be considered a pretty big benefit for the employer. A good employer wants their office to be the perfect workplace for maximum efficiency. But perfection is subjective, and unless an employer is bleeding cash and floorspace out their ears they’re almost certainly not going to be able to provide the perfect workplace for every one of their employees. So - let them work from home, where they are each in full control of the workplace!
This also means that co-workers’ preferences don’t detract from anyone else. If your perfect workplace involves loud techno music and complete darkness, then I hope your co-worker the next cube over doesn’t need perfect quite and lots of sunlight. But if you are both telecommuting, you can both work in the best environment for you.
Comfort hot topics:
- clothing
- food and drinks
- intentional noise levels (e.g. music)
- ambient noise levels (e.g. traffic)
- light levels
- space
- thermostat controls
- air quality / allergen control
- furniture
- environment / location (e.g. living in the country vs. working downtown)
Isolation
Tangential to Worker Comfort is Worker Isolation. They are both important to removing distractions.
Face it, whether or not an office actually has a water cooler, there’s still going to be a lot of water cooler talk going on. When you lump people together, they tend to chat, and obviously not always on topic. While it’s true that some discussions, e.g. meetings, are beneficial, others are just chatter. It’s important for even telecommuters to be connected to their coworkers, with email, IM, Skype, etc., and even plain chatter is an important way for team members to get closer.
But if you’re in the heat of the moment, most of these services allow you to tag your status as "busy" or "do not disturb." It’s a great way to let people know that it just might not be the right time to discuss the big reveal in last night’s episode of Lost. With developers in particular, studies have shown that even tiny distractions can mean 10-15 of lost productivity. I refer to this as "momentum working" and if you get derailed it can be a while before you’re back up to speed. Avoiding tiny intrusions into your concentration can save a project hours of time.
Schedule
Not everyone is at their most productive from 9-5. If you’re a night owl, then your before-noon productivity might even be devastatingly low. Working out of a home office means you have greater control over when you work. If your peak productivity happens to be between 11pm and 3am, then go for it.
You can’t avoid all 9-5 interaction, of course. You will still need to participate in conference calls, status chats, etc. But in my experience, at least, while they are important events, they have little to do with productivity. At least in terms of your concentration on problem solving or focus on creativity is concerned these are interruptions. So, why not schedule the planned interruptions for your less-productive times, and work on your tasks later, when your productivity is more optimal anyway?
The Commute
Early in my freelancing life, some of my work was done on-site, including clocking in and out from 9-5. I was living in Chicago at the time, and the commute was 75 minutes each way if I was lucky. It approached two hours on heavy traffic days, and during bad weather was once 2.5 hours to get home.
Commuting is a tragic waste of human life.
Look at my example, 2.5 hours a day at best for my commute means that more than 10% of my entire day is completely wasted. If only I could have slept in that extra hour or more in the morning, I could have been more productive while I was at work! And I would have much rather stayed at work for the extra hour or more at the end of the day, and at least be productive and possibly getting a crucial extra bit of time to finish a deadline on time.
Working from home means no commute. How you spend this time is up to you, but you can make it count. You could get some extra work done. You could get some extra sleep. You could even sit around and play video games, and if it reduces your overall stress level than it can improve your productivity while you are working.
Health
Having paid sick time is nice, but it’s not always (if ever) convenient. Sick time isn’t just about giving you the chance to lie down for a day and rest, it’s also about giving your coworkers a break from the onslaught of germs coming from your cubicle. But a deadline is a deadline, right? Sometimes the decision to take a sick day is made with heavier consideration towards your project’s timeline than for your health, and the health of your coworkers. If you do have that extra-critical deadline and get sick, working from home lets you meet the best of both options. Work a bit, rest a bit, work a bit, rest a bit. You can still lay down for much of the day and not have to leave the house, while also getting some work done. When you’re working from home, there’s a different measurement of being too sick to work.
Equipment
The last benefit I’ll mention doesn’t come up as often as the rest, but it can make a difference. I am a real Power User when it comes to computers. My computer is a heavily customized tool. As a Linux user, I even tweak some of the applications I use at a source level, and recompile them for my own particular computer. I write a lot of my own scripts and tools. I’ve built up a pretty good script library and have a lot of third part scripts on hand for immediate use. My most used programs and bookmarks are right where I need them. I can get to anything I want with a few clicks, and my computer allows 100% productivity at all times.
I’ve seen a lot of job/contract listings for on-site positions that ask the applicant to be ready to hop right into an ongoing project immediately. I don’t know who they think can do that, but I like to think that I’m a more advanced developer than someone who can just sit down at a strange computer and be as productive as they would be on their own computer. Able to work? Yes. Be productive? No, and that’s the key. I would feel utterly crippled without my computer, like a master carpenter would feel when told that all they have to work on is a $150 Lowes table saw.
There are a few other equipment benefits of course. Having nicer speakers if you’re an I-need-music-all-day worker, or having a dual monitor setup. Or even the choice of OS. Most offices require employees to use the same OS so their IT department doesn’t need to worry about different systems. When working remotely, you have the choice.
Summary
In short, working from home can range from being a nice perk to being essential to your productivity. Ultimately it depends on who you are and what you do. I consider myself lucky to be in a field where working from home makes so much sense. If you’re not already working remotely, think about the benefits. If you talk it over with your employer, make it clear that these benefits will make you a better worker and will therefore be a benefit to both sides. Give it a try.