Since moving to a self-employed position 3 months ago, I’ve found that some people simply don’t understand working at home is still working.
It doesn’t really bother me, it’s just not very fun to hear “so, what were you doing today?” all the time, as if I’ve been relaxing. I think it bugs my wife more than it bugs me.
I know that part of this is because in this rural setting, specifically with her family (who are all tradespeople) it’s hard to imagine how you could “work” at “home”.
Maybe this is just another reason to consider getting an actual office outside the home, once finances improve?
April 12th, 2005 at 3:08 pm
[...] of times: “I don’t know how you get it all done”. This is ironic, considering some people don’t understand how busy you can be working a [...]
April 6th, 2005 at 2:34 pm
We need more a working commons in every major city in Canada.
April 6th, 2005 at 3:19 pm
Some People Just Don’t Understand Working At Home
Jeremy Wright: Since moving to a self-employed position 3 months ago, I’ve found that some people simply don’t understand working at home is still working. It doesn’t really bother me, it’s just not very fun to hear “so, what were…
April 6th, 2005 at 3:28 pm
I’ve had to deal with this for years. People assume I’m available during the day because I’m at home. Worse yet, for a long time they’d forward me job classifieds because they considered me “unemployed”.
Sometimes convincing myself I’m really working hard is even harder…
April 6th, 2005 at 3:55 pm
You ain’t kidding. I’ve been doing this for 5 years now. When I first started a manager (jokingly) suggested during a conference call team meeting that I was sitting in my bathrobe, drinking a beer, and smoking a joint. Complete disrespect and lack of understanding that just because I work at home doesn’t mean I’m any less professional about my work. My hours might be more flexible and I might take time out during the “work day” to do something else, but work still gets done, the phone gets answered, and meetings attended.
April 6th, 2005 at 4:31 pm
The challenges of working at home
Jeremy saysSome People Don’t Understand Working @ Home, nope they don’t. I’ve been a teleworker/home-based worker for five years now. I’ve been lucky …
April 6th, 2005 at 8:57 pm
Great post – just linked up with some of my own thoughts….
maybe we should all get an office together….somewhere in between us….say…hmmmm …Hawai?
April 6th, 2005 at 11:43 pm
I’d say you should get an office either really seperate at home or somewhere else just because then it’s an office. You need to go home from work. I really feel that this is more a psychological thing.
So yes, get an office. Go to work and _leave_ work.
April 7th, 2005 at 2:53 am
Working at home sometimes may cost u more time at work. Coz u don’t have a sence of leaving work, so sometimes u may even work all-night.In my opinion u had better get a normal style.
on the other hand, u have the right to redistribute ur working time. U can save much time from going and leaving work..
April 7th, 2005 at 6:06 am
I agree with the above comments, you should get some sort of office. It’s the sycological differences to yourself, as well as others.
April 7th, 2005 at 6:25 am
Working from home … bliss!
Do you work from home? I have read a few posts by Darren Rowse, Jeremy Wright and Tris Hussey on this topic and the perspectives they give are very interesting. For my part, I intend working from home while I develop my business/es for a number of re…
April 7th, 2005 at 9:46 am
My experience is nearly the same.
I work from home just about everyday and I get comments about how nice it must be to stay at home all day. People wonder how I get anything done and also assume I’m available (but only once per person).
I do let people know – hey, I’m busy. I’m working. Not goofing around watching TV or sitting by the pool. Granted, I may take a peek at a blog or 2 over time but usually it’s to enhance my work life.
I separate myself from the hustle of the house by having a separate office. I’ll close the door if things get too loud and will work to stay very focused on the actual work at hand.
April 7th, 2005 at 11:10 am
lol, I know what that’s like. You don’t need an office… unless you think you do.
April 7th, 2005 at 1:06 pm
I had an office for almost a year. IThankfully I was “forced” to move out after the building was sold. I actually got less done at my offic ethan I do at home. My office wasn’t that far, but driving to and from the office alone added quite a bit of time tomy day. I had to drive there, say hello to everyone, get coffee, setup my laptop, check voice mail, check email, then I would turn around and leave to go meet clients. It seemed like such a waste of time. Now that I am working from home again I sometimes have more done by 10 AM than some people get done all day.
April 7th, 2005 at 7:11 pm
I really hate that. No one considers anything but laborous work and office jobs in tiny cubicles to be tough work for some reason.
I’d say that just knowing you’re right is good enough to save you the money that you’d have to spend on getting an office, but that’s just personal opinion.
April 10th, 2005 at 9:33 am
Oooh, I so know how you feel. I’ve been self-employed for eight years, and during most of that time I have worked harder than I ever did whilst working for someone else. When you’re working for The Man, you can slack off and so long as you don’t get caught or crap out on a deadline, you can get away with it. Slack off when you work for yourself and the guilt will get you, not to mention your To Do list. You can’t chuck a sickie, because the work will still be there when you come back, holidays become harder to take because the impetus to always be working can be difficult to resists, and the insecurity can be a killer. Weekends meld into weeks, lunchtimes get shorter and evenings get later. The isolation can be a nightmare too – I really miss socialising and going out to lunch.
On the other hand, if I want to go to a conference or take a day off I can. I choose where I work, and how. I decide which projects I want to work on, and which I don’t, and if I want to invent one of my own then that’s up to me. I never have to commute – I simply lean out of bed and pick up the laptop – and if I do want to work in my jimjams, I can. I can work from my desk, my bed, my lounge or my garden. I can even pick all my stuff up and go to the park if I fancy it. My days are never the same and I can grasp any opportunity that comes by that I fancy. Life is never dull, never repetitive and never boring. And, best of all, no one else is getting unduely rich at my expense!
Personally, I could never work in a 9-5 job again, because I would simply explode with frustration within about, oh, three weeks. So yeah, people’s lack of understanding can be annoying, but I’m the one who’s in control of my own destiny! (Unless, of course, it’s in control of me… which might be closer to the truth.)
April 10th, 2005 at 6:26 pm
Well put Suw!
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