More and more companies are giving their employees the opportunity to work from the comforts of their own home. It really pays for companies to do this for a variety of reasons. The biggest one is it is way cheaper to have employees stay home and work then come into the office, If a company is completely virtual like mine, there are no building costs, no heating costs, no equipment costs.
For the employee there are big savings too, the biggest for me is travelling expense. With out the daily commute everyday there is no need to have a second car and all the costs that go with it. The second big saving is clothing. I don't need to invest the money I used to spend on work clothing. In fact most of the time I can work in my pajamas if I want to. More on that later.
There are a lot of reasons a person may choose to work from home instead of the traditional workplace. If you are a mom or dad, you might want to might want to be home with your kids, but still need to earn a living so this is a good solution. Perhaps it is not possible for you to travel to an outside work place for one reason or another. What ever the reason, there are some things you should consider before you take that plunge.
Space to work
Seems simple enough right? If you are going to work from home you are going to need a place to do your work stuff, surprisingly, some people think that they can just set up at their kitchen table and they are good to go. Now depending on the type of work you do, this might work, But for most jobs you are required to have a separate space with a door that you can close to work privately. If you are in a small space and every room is occupied then working from home may not be possible for you.
What about the kids and pets?
One of the biggest rewards and drawbacks to working from home is children and pets. Rewards happen because you are home with them instead of a babysitter. Or that is the theory anyway. It really depends on the age of your children and level of care they need. It also depends on whether or not noise will affect the quality of work. For example, my job requires absolute quiet. If I cannot have a quiet environment to work, that is a deal breaker. Before setting up your office and burning all your work clothes, think realistically about the noise level in your home. How much attention do your children need? Are they older or really young? The smaller the child the more attention you need to give them. Depending on your job, this might not be possible. Even older children can demand a certain amount attention and don't always understand that they need to be quiet and not bother Mommy or Daddy while they are working, The same things apply to pets, if your dog barks a lot, this may not be optimal work conditions for you. For these reasons you may have to keep your babysitter so you can work. Or invest in duct tape... I am just kidding! please don't duct tape your children!
What kind of work do you want to do?
If your company has created a work from home position then this one is a no brainer, most likely you will be doing the same thing you did at the office. But if you are not so lucky and you need to find a new job then you will first need to decide what it is you want to do. Not every job is for everyone. Can you live on the money they are offering? Can you commit the hours that you will be required to? Just be cause you are home you will still be putting a full work week. This is really hard for some people. Before you apply for any job offering whether from home or in a brick and mortar situation, do some research, Google the company name and read reviews, Find out if anyone else you know works there, and if so what has been their experience? Do they like working there and why? Is there a strong reliable support system? What don't they like? I cannot stress this enough, Please for the love of all that is holy, READ THE JOB DESCRIPTION! There is nothing worse than quitting your current job only to find that the job you thought was going to make staying home a reality is nothing more than a scam. More on that later too.
What about Cost?
Before jumping on the next work at home position you hear about, really think it through, remember you will be at home, you will not always have a supervisor to go to when you get stuck , you may have to figure things out for yourself. Make sure you can handle it and your tools are up to the challenge. To start working form home you may have to invest in a new computer, a better internet connection and other tools, You may have to renovate a space if you own your own home to make it more suitable for your work needs. Do you need to buy additional equipment? Most companies will give you a list of the things you must have when you speak with them about the position, really good companies will have those items listed in the job posting. Make sure you can meet these needs before you commit.
The Pros
The commute.
Simple walk from my coffee pot to my office all of 20 feet. This means no fighting traffic, no driving in snowstorms , no gas bill. It's bliss.
Sleeping in.
Depending on where you live and what time zone your company operates on , you can potentially sleep until a half an hour before you work, This means no getting up at 5:45 am to get ready and then drive an hour to work. Again, this is bliss.
More family time.
This was a biggie for me, Even though my son was in high school when I started working from home, I knew he would soon be going off to university. It was absolutely priceless to me that he could come home from school each day and just come and sit with me for a few minutes or if he needed me for something I was a simple knock on my office door away. The same goes for my husband. He can pop in to refresh my coffee, or ask how my day was. Or just sit with me for a minute if I am not too busy. This too falls under bliss.
Tax breaks.
In Canada and I believe also the U.S.A, (not sure about other countries) the government offers tax breaks for working from home. You can legally claim a certain amount of your rent, electricity, and supplies on your taxes. It is really easy to get information on this if you check with your government.
The wardrobe.
As mentioned previously, So long as you don't have to attend some sort of video conferences with other co-workers, it really doesn't matter how you look or dress, you can wear your comfy jammies if you like. This how ever can become a con.. as you will read shortly.
Freedom from work place illness.
If you work in a large office space -or worse, a smaller cramped office- then you know what happens when someone comes to work with some particularly nasty and persistent bug, with in a few weeks everyone is sick and that includes you. This won't protect you from the nasties your spouse and kids will bring home but it will certainly lessen the times a year you may get sick.
The Cons
Finding a legitimate work from home job
This is a big one, NEVER accept a position that expects you to pay them for the privilege of being an employee. Some " companies" will charge ridiculous amounts for you to work for them. Then you find out you don't get paid until you sell something or meet some sort of requirement. There are a lot of places like this out there. READ THE FINE PRINT. This also goes for companies that don't want to pay you for training. If you are giving them your time you need to get paid. Period.
Do they deduct tax or are you considered an independent?
While this may seem like a bonus to your pay check if you are considered an independent, you will make a little more money, BUT at tax time, this can really hurt you when you are required to pay all the taxes that were not deducted. It will also effect unemployment benefits. If you don't pay in, you can't fall back on it later if you need it.
Never leaving your home.
This is way easier then it sounds. It is important to have a life out side your home. I work at least 40 hours a week and lately more than that, so it is not uncommon for me to not leave my house for 2 weeks or more. I don't mind that, because I am not a big people person. But isolation can make you go a little nutty. My husband is really big on making me get out once in a while, He insists on it. He is afraid I will become a hermit.
The wardrobe.
Not having to dress up and being able to wear comfy clothes all the time is a bit of a trap, when your jammy pants outnumber your jeans then you should consider a wardrobe change. And FYI, I am guilty of this.
Bad support system.
If you have technical issues will there be help? Does your company have a support system in place if you need help or encounter a problem? My company uses Skype messenger to communicate and there is always a supervisor online, but not all companies have that. If the problem is with your own equipment can you fix it, I had no choice but to get really familiar with how my computer works and how to fix it, Even so I cannot fix everything. Things will break and will wear out. You have to be prepared to replace things right away if needed. Or it could mean losing your job.
Unless you are single and have no children you will also need a good family support system. You are still working a normal work week. Just because you are home does not mean you can just get up and go do laundry or wash the dishes. This takes dedication on your part. It is still a job. You are still required to show up and put in the required time. You will still need your family to pitch in around the house the same as they would if you were working outside the home. They will also need to be understanding and respect your work space, This means learning to be quiet and not blare the t.v or the radio while you are working, Most homes are not sound proof and what may seem normal if you are not working can be really detrimental when you work from home.
So there you have it, Working from home is very rewarding and it is the only way for me. I love that I am home and still earn a paycheck every two weeks, but it is not for everyone. If you have questions or want to learn more about the challenges and the pay offs please feel free to drop me a line or leave a comment I will do my best to answer anything I can.
