Rute Cotrim
October 10, 2017
I will tell you about some months that had been a bit peculiar for me, which led me to start wondering whether I should take a small break from the office routine.
Having decided to work from home for some time, I embraced a new period on my professional life. At first, working from home can be an exciting idea. But, believe it or not, it can be scary too! Mainly if you have never had that experience before.
I count a lot of perks of working from home but I’ll point out three:
1. My productivity increased a lot
I didn’t have collegues begging for my time and making me requests even if I was busy — but that’s what you get too when you are the only UX/UI on the project. I could manage my time much better and take some breaks during the day, which clearly increased my focus. And I got all my tasks scheduled and way better organized.
2.Feedbacks and value given by collegues and client only addressed to my work
When you work from home you don’t need to show yourself often, except if you have some calls to make. That can be a very positive perspective of working from home because you don’t need to play any role or try hard to please the people around you to fit in the environment. We all tend to do that, even if it’s not a rational choice. So most of the feedback you receive is based on what you do instead of being based on what you do plus what you seem to be as a collegue. And that’s so good for people as reserved and anxious as me!
3. I could establish a better balance between work and wellness
The easiest example is that I could eat at the time I wanted, rest at the time I wanted and work in a quiet and peaceful environment. That really helped me in a lot of things, such as my health and my motivation.
But there’s also the negative side of it, specially if you are used to be surrounded by a lot of people and prefer this to being alone or even if you get distracted by a fly passing by.
1. You’ve got to be focused and you should not distract yourself easily
Being alone with a television near you or with no one judging you while you check your social networks can sound like a temptation.
2. You may create a sense of accomodation
Working from home is totally more comfortable, but there’s a big difference between working relaxed but focused and getting lazy.
3. Communication and bonds to your collegues may have some flaws
If you work from home you should make sure that you don’t get isolated from the people you’re working with.
Working from home made me change some of my habits, but I learned a lot from it too. You must keep in mind that you don’t need to be stressed out to do your work remarkably, you just need to find your pace. You should also learn to say “no” when you know you won’t be able to do some task. That doesn’t mean you’re a bad professional. It’s actually the opposite: it means you’re mature, responsible and that you worry.
Also, if you feel like you’re not giving enough and not pushing youself forward because there’s some problem detaining you, I really think you should just take a break, breathe in and out and find ways to improve your wellness — even if it means that you need to take a pillbox of courage and suggest a change to your superiors!
If you are devoted and a hard worker, the chances you will get a positive feedback to your call are substantially bigger. Good luck!