Is Working From Home Good For You?
This post is dedicated to the many professionals who are finding that working from home is proving to be much tougher than they expected. The case story below illustrates the challenges of working from home, and is not based on real-life persons.
********
Jodi’s Zoom Meeting
Jodi gently knocked on the door and warily entered the office of Dr. John Hartman, a renowned psychologist, about an hour drive from her home.
The doctor welcomed her with a warm smile and invited Jodi to sit on the comfortable chair next to him. “What brings you here today, Jodi?” he asked.
Jodi hesitated for a moment and then said “I have not been myself lately, Doctor. I don’t know what is happening to me. I feel that something is wrong, but I cannot put my finger on it.”
“Tell me more.” Dr. Hartman said.
“This has never happened to me before, Doctor Hartman. I am not that kind of person at all.” She said as her voice trembled. “On Monday afternoon we had our weekly Zoom team meeting. It started as all our Monday meetings – uneventful.”
“And then John, one of my team members, said something that irritated me. I do not even remember what it was. But it made me snap and go on a tantrum. I even threatened to get John fired. I left the Zoom meeting immediately, went to my bedroom and cried for more than an hour. I was not able to calm myself down.”
“On Tuesday morning, I called John and I apologized profusely. I also called my HR manager to let him know what happened. I do not know if they will find it in their hearts to let me keep my job. But that does not matter now. I have to find out what’s wrong with me and fix it, before everything else.”
“How long have you been working from home, Jodi?” Asked Dr. Hartman.
“How did you know? 5About a year now.” said Jodi. “I got divorced about 18 months ago, I moved to the city soon after, and found this work-from-home job as a team leader.”
**********
The Perils Of Working From Home
Before I tell you the end of Jodi’s story, I want to write about the perils of working from home.
Working from home offers many benefits, including saving on the commute time and cost, saving on child care, flexibility, and more.
But working from home has major perils as well. The problem is, that we are often not even aware of the accumulating negative effects of prolonged working from home until the damage is done.
Evolutionary psychology tells us that our mental well-being profoundly depends on our social connections. Depriving us from these social connections for a long period of time, is bound to harm us profoundly.
The evidence is overwhelming:
Below are some of the references I discovered when looking into the harm of working from home.
On October 15, 2021 Forbes Magazine said this about remote work:
· 60% of employees reported working at home at least a few days a month and nearly a third (32%) worked at home all the time (19% a few days a week; 9% a few days a month). While working from home has advantages and benefits, it also comes with drawbacks, including isolation and loneliness and difficulty getting away from work for personal time.
· Nearly two-thirds of people working from home feel isolated or lonely at least sometimes and 17% do all the time. More than two-thirds of employees who work from home at least part of the time report they have trouble getting away from work at the end of the day always (22%) or sometimes (45%). Younger adults (73% of 18 to 29-year-olds and 73% of 30 to 44-year-olds) were more likely to report feeling isolated or lonely working at home compared to older adults (48% of 45 to 64-year-olds).
A paper by Yijing Xiao and colleagues, published on the National Institute of Health (NIH) website on November 23, 2020 said:
Approximately two-thirds (64.8%) of respondents reported new physical health issues and approximately three-fourths (73.6%) of participants reported new mental health issues arising since WFH.
On June 16, 2022 the BBC said:
The negative effects have come as a surprise for some employees, who are now feeling the crush, realizing remote work isn’t necessarily the wellness panacea it has been touted as. Contrary to the running narrative of a mass demand for remote work, some employees are actually choosing to switch into roles with an in-office component.
A survey by Nuffield Health published on June 19, 2020 found that:
Recommended by LinkedIn
A new survey reveals that 80% of Brits feel working from home has had a negative impact on their mental health.
A quarter of those working from home (25%) say they are finding it difficult to cope with the mental challenges of loneliness and isolation from colleagues. And while video calls have proved to be invaluable in linking physically separated co-workers and clients, they are also inadvertently placing more stress upon us with one in five Brits working from home (19%) saying they feel pressure to look good on video meetings.
Separating work and home has also proved challenging. Almost a third of Brits working from home (30%) have been finding it difficult separating their home lives from their work lives, with over a quarter (27%) reporting difficulties switching off at the end of the day or working week.
It’s perhaps not surprising then that a third of Brits working from home (34%) say that it has placed a strain on relationships within the household, with both partners and children.
What can you do about it?
Here is are the two most effective recommendations I’ve identified from sources including
the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), The Government of Canada, and others:
1. Create an office-like environment and routines
Creating an office-like environment and routines will help you set boundaries between your work time and your personal time, and thus achieve a much better work-life balance.
· If you can, dedicate a separate room in your house as your “office space”.
· Follow your old go-to-the-office routines: take a shower, put on your make-up or shave, dress up, have your breakfast, send the kids to school (if applicable), and only then enter your office and switch on your computer.
· Take a “formal” lunch break. Do not eat at your desk.
· End your workday at your usual old hour. Shut down your computer and leave your home office.
· Do not check your work emails or messages after the end of your formal workday.
· Let your boss and colleagues know that you will not check emails or messages after hours. Ask them to call you in case of an emergency.
2. Up-keep your social connections
Up-keeping your social connections takes effort and discipline, especially if you are an introvert who feels more comfortable in your own company. But your brain’s cortisol level, stress, anxiety, and even depression do not care if you are an introvert or an extrovert. Your brain needs your social connections to remain healthy.
· Identify co-workers with whom your feel comfortable, and who make you feel good about yourself and about your relationship with them.
· Agree with them on a regular time for a “virtual coffee”.
· Think about ways to make these “virtual coffees” feel natural and free-flowing, just as your in-person meetings used to be.
· Be disciplined about keeping your social schedule. Make sure to re-schedule missed meetings – Do not let them be cancelled.
· “Beef-up” your social activities with family and friends to compensate for the lower level of social connections caused by working from home.
Back to Jodi
And now, back to Jodi’s story.
Sadly, after thorough consideration by Jodi’s management and by her HR department, they decided that, after what happened at that Zoom meeting, Jodi would no longer be able to do her job effectively. So, Jodi was let go.
Jodi worked with Dr. Hartman for a few months to restore her mental resilience and well-being.
Six months later she found an in-office job as a team leader. As it so happened, the new job actually paid more than her old one. Her new team accepted her as their leader and she was able to integrate well into the new company, build new relationships, and contribute the value that was expected of her.
********
If you have any questions or comments regarding this article, please email me at Uri@thewilltochange.com
And now please take the next 3 minutes to watch my video message below. You may find it of genuine value:
Director, Coach, Consultant and Supply Chain Management Practitioner. Growing interest in the procurement of innovation.
2yThank you Uri. Important perspectives and lessons for all.