What are the benefits and drawbacks of working at home?

Advantages of working from home :

• Less time waste in transports!
  Indeed, when we are working from home we gain a lot of time by avoiding taking public transports to the office. Moreover, we save a lot of money in the long term. It prevents stress due to the traffic if we are used to taking the car.
• A very quiet environment
  There is a huge difference between working in a noisy office and a comfortable apartment. We have way fewer human contacts when we are working from our homes, there are fewer distractions than in casual offices. This is advantageous for our concentration and our productivity.
• Flexibility and liberty
  Telecommuting allows us to be more autonomous concerning our schedule. We are often free to choose the moments we work and the moments we give to our family and our leisure. It requires however a big self-discipline ability to find a balance between the work, the family life, and working from home.  Once this balance is found, switching between work tasks and leisure activities will give you an amazing feeling of freedom.
• A diminution of tiredness
  When working from home, we are free to manage our work moments and our rest moments as we want. If we suddenly feel tired, we can always take a short nap to feel re-energized afterward. The freedom of organization allows us to switch between productivity and rest following our needs.

Disadvantages of working from home :

• The feeling of being isolated and the lack of social contacts
  Being at home alone when we are used to working with our colleagues and our managers at the office could be a chock. Losing the teamwork spirit is a very important risk. When we don’t have the opportunity to be directly in contact with the members of our team, our membership feeling can be reduced.
• Difficulties to create a barrier between professional life and private life
  It is not easy to find the perfect balance between work and private life when we work from home. If we don’t have good self-discipline skills, the boundaries between the two spheres will be blurred. In this case, it could lead to family conflicts.
• Potential distractions
  Depending on our lifestyle, some factors can be a source of distractions, leading to interruptions in our work tasks (for example, kids’ presence at home when we are telecommuting). The consequence would be concentration and productivity loss.

Let’s get ready and equip ourselves correctly

Working from home can be dangerous for our health if you don’t implement specific measures to get a healthy and clear workspace. It is necessary to respect specific ergonomic rules to work comfortably and to be efficient.

First, it is important to have the correct posture. Working at our casual kitchen table and sitting on a simple kitchen chair can cause back, neck, and shoulders pain. It is advised to use an ergonomic chair, such as a comfortable office chair.

Then, it is better to avoid sitting for a long time. Sitting at our table all day long increases back pain and muscular pain. It also increases tiredness and diminishes productivity. Moving as much as possible is the best solution. Changing between the sitting posture and the standing posture as often as possible is very beneficial for your health and is a good way for working at home.

Finally, having a clear, adapted workspace is one of the most important tips. Taking away everything that could be sourced from distractions and having a well-organized desk will allow you to focus better on work and you won’t be distracted. Putting your desk near a window to enjoy natural light and a beautiful view of the outside environment is a very good option. Your eyes will have the opportunity to rest because usually, they are subject to artificial lighting. Read more on our blog.

Malinowska Paulina

REFERENCES :

• L’ECHO : travail et coronavirus : tout ce que vous devez savoir, Sonja Verschueren (16.03.2020)
• Passeport Santé : Travailler de chez soi (décembre 2016)
• Dynamic-mag.com : Les avantages et les inconvénients du télétravail (24/09/2016)
• Devenez riches et libres : 8 avantages du télétravail, Michael Ferrari (8 décembre 2008)
• VRT NEWS : Je laptop plat op de keukentafel zetten tijdens thuiswerken ? Geen goed idee, Bart Rooms (2 juillet 2019)