Working from my backyard

The sun is shining all around me. I can hear some birds singing in the trees around my house. The air is lovely and the coffee next to me tastes great. Yet, at the same time, I am getting some work done while typing away on my keyboard.

The appalling traffic this weak got me thinking. Why are we not working from home this day an age? What are the limitations of your job that force you to physically be in a specified place? Well, apart from people who work in constructions, furniture moving and/or jobs that imply you have to move objects around to get things done, I a sure that 90% of us sit in front of a monitor all day, typing away, while taking the occasional phone call every now and then. And with the current Internet speeds and wide availability, anyone can remotely login from home on any computer, or just use your home computer as your primary work machine.

So what are the advantages? One I have mentioned already: traffic. Unless you live in a hotel or have an unusually large family, the trip to your office should not take you across more than 2-3 people away, compared to the hundreds of people you come across daily on your way to work. Not only that, but I can get out of bed at 8:45 and be at my desk by no more than 9 without too much hassle. And if you have a laptop, you can actually start work right in bed. Even more so, you save money on transport. Let's face it, no matter what your chosen mode of transport is, unless it's your own two feet, you have to caugh up some cash in order to use it.

Secondly, for most of us, a house is the largest investment we will ever make in our lifetime. So why not make good use of it? Plus, since it is your own house, you can organize your workspace whichever way you see fit. You can personalize your work gear to suit your needs as well. Do you need 3 monitors to get the job done? No problem, just buy them and get them working. Does a small netbook work for you? That is fine as well. The way I see it, your employer should not have any problem with the gear you use as long as you get things done. Plus, now you don't need 12 different suites just to look good every day. Nobody cares if you're sitting in your pajamas while you're in your own house.

Now of course, there must be a downside. The greatest disadvantage of working from home is the lack of social interaction that you normally get when going to work. But perhaps the employees not hanging around the water cooler is not such a bad thing, now is it. In fact, an employee that does not require an office, can basically work around the clock since he or she doesn't need to go home and doesn't waste time by hanging out with the rest of the staff may just be what employers need. Maybe they should, in fact, consider that as a viable option for the future.