5 Things We Enjoy about Working from Home

Like many other small organizations and businesses, working from home is the new normal, and it turns out there are many more benefits to it than we initially thought.

For the past 6 months, our Provincial Leadership team has been working from home as we navigated the pandemic. What started out as a temporary solution to a global problem, is now being brought forward as a permanent, cost saving model. Reduced overhead costs and increased productivity is just the beginning.

Figuring our logistics, like how to navigate technology; and combatting cons, such as miscommunication in email writing, posed quite the obstacle for our small non-profit. But by working together, and finding solutions through trial and error, we ended up finding that there were a lot of benefits that we enjoyed about working from home. Which made us completely change our perspective on the necessity of in-office at all.

Here is what we found:

1. Working at your own pace. Whether it was staying on a schedule of 9-5, being an early bird and starting at 6:00 am, taking a 2 hour lunch break, or finding inspiration at 8:00 pm. We all work differently and are the most productive at varying hours. Why force yourself into a schedule that doesn’t work for you? Working from home has given us this freedom.
2. We can do laundry during the day instead of at 9:00 pm at night. Who would’ve thought that something so minor would bring so much joy. Being able to switch your laundry throughout the day? Absolutely amazing.
3. Brain breaks are a miracle. A morning filled with meetings? A tedious task that made your brain feel like jello? Go for a walk, pet your dog, make some tea. These all never seemed like a possibility before, but now that they are – we actually feel more productive!
4. Even though we are still working 8 hour days, there is more time for family time. We can be there when our kids get home from school, make them breakfast, or spend lunch together.
5. Our team feels more connected and in the know with other departments and colleagues than ever before. Even though it’s all virtual, our organization has made a bigger effort to stay up to date. Microsoft Teams and Sharepoint has made collaboration and meetings so efficient.

Overall, working from home has provided our staff with the ability to find that work-life balance everyone has been struggling with. It has increased everyone’s productivity because they are now working on their own terms and on their own time.

How has your company been handling working from home? Are you already back in the office or are you permanently going to a work from home solution? Or are you somewhere in the middle? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!