work from home vs. working from an office

Since, the COVID-19 pandemic, the idea of working remotely has become increasingly appealing to the masses. Technology has moved in a direction that allows more and more jobs to have the ability to work from home with ease. But, working from home hasn’t made working from an office any less important.  

Work-life balance

No matter how much you love your job, it’s unhealthy to ‘always’ be working. The boundary that separates ‘work’ from ‘play’ becomes blurred as we spend more time working from home.   

Having an office to go to during set hours of the day, helps create this important divide between your work life and your personal life, in which the stresses of each aspect are left in the doorway when the time arrives.   

If you have no choice BUT to work remotely, try and create these boundaries using different methods. For example, try working in a room you wouldn’t normally relax in. 

quality assurance

Not all jobs are suitable for working from home. But, in some cases, not all homes are suitable for working either.   

In an office, certain standards have to be met by law: suitable equipment (such as a chair/desk) and maintained appropriate working conditions (such as a steady temperature, running water, etc.). Whereas, when working from home you are expected to ‘sort yourself out’ in this regard.   

For some people, heading into the office also acts as the sole distraction from everyday life. Working from home can result in life being shrouded in distractions like barking dogs or wailing hoovers in the background.  

relationship building

When working remotely (especially over a long period) the number of people you speak to slowly dwindles, excluding only the people you work with directly.  

Being in the office with everyone allows for connecting with colleagues you wouldn’t normally speak with on a day-to-day basis. General chit-chat over something as small as a cup of tea is so valuable in the workplace, as it’s an organic way to voice new ideas, share important memos, or just learn new processes of how to get certain things done.  

On top of this, it’s much easier to read someone’s opinions or emotions face-to-face rather than through email or direct message, which helps to get a genuine reaction to a project you’re working on. 

In essence, offices are still a majorly important factor in many people’s lives. Obviously, everyone likes the idea of working from home. At face value, it makes life easier and, grants a person a certain level of freedom that set office hours would normally take away. That being said, working from home also removes the social aspect of working out of an office, as well as certain standards guaranteed by law.

Sources

all of our research can be found here: ey.com