Work-From-Home is the trend that will bring back the American Standard of Living (™) (employment, suspect)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
The period of the 1900s to 1950s in America was the unparalleled boom in the standard of living of the average American. The invention and mass production of the automobile, dishwasher, television, etc. were making life easier every year.
The invention of the personal computer was arguably another boom.
The problem for the last 10-20 years has been the population shift to the cities and the increasing housing prices and traffic that come with it.
That will go away with something that has already been invented: Work-From-Home.
Employers are still experimenting with the idea, but eventually they will come around and it will be the norm.
This trend will allow individuals to virtually retire as early as their 30s and 40s. I've already seen it happen. Outdoorsy people with fancy tech jobs can keep their job and move to Montana where they can live in a 5-bedroom house for $200/month and hunt in their backyard. Or adventurous people can do their work from an apartment on the coast of a low-COL country like Spain for a few months and Italy the next few months.
But the most important commodity for people is time and Work-From-Home will add 1-2 hours of free time to the day.
Yeah I’ve been working from home full time for 5 years now and it is awesome. Was allowed 2-3 days a week remote prior to that but was still tied to the office location. Now I’m free to go live/work anywhere and chose SW Washington. No income tax, scenery here is awesome with ability to fit the coast, mountains, rain forests and deserts all in one day trip. But most importantly it is the time saved. No longer throwing away 2hrs of every day to a commute. I can’t imagine going back to that. May try the expat thing at some point. I have one coworker currently living and working from France with his family. Like one long European vacation.
Probably not a reality. There is a subset of employees that are very productive working from home, but for most it just doesn’t really work. It falls in the same category that not everyone is cut out to run their own business.
My husband is very effective working from home, he gets a great deal accomplished, more than at the office because people aren’t around to distract him with trivial matters. I would be an absolute failure at it. I suspect more people are like me than him.
I work from home three days a week but we're getting ready to consolidate a lot of different regions and I suspect they won't force anyone to move. A large subset of our workforce will be working full time from home.
I worked from home in a couple of positions and loved it. It was very productive, I got more done in a shorter time, no stress from a commute, could work in my pajamas. No downside.
My sister has worked from for the past decade and loves it.
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
I doubt it will be the norm until / unless virtual reality technology further improves. Reality at least in the professional business world is that most work is highly collaborative and intrgrative, and distance + time zones still can make it very tough for many occupations to function cohesively, even with teleconferencing technology (although it helps a ton, of course).
For all its benefits, remote work in a business career has some real downsides, notably: (1) greater risk of being more disconnected from the critical mass or on-the-ground activity in the Corp centers; and therefore (2) greater risk of career stagnation, being passed over for opportunities, etc. Oftentimes a lot more travel is necessary to counteract it. This is all, of course, assuming you're interested in career progression, which of course not everyone is. But having managed on-site and remote workers, I've seen it happen. It's something I evaluate carefully when choosing location/mobility and candidates for my open roles. For certain roles, I want motivated, career/leadership growth mindset people in the seat. I will think several times over before hiring a remote worker for that role. Travel expectations become a big thing then.
My wife already works from home 80% of the time. That isn't routinely done where I work, but if the weather is bad or I'm not feeling great, I can log in from home and do 90% of my job. In time this job may be mostly or entirely work-from-home... we're already pretty far down that road.
I see this as a great thing for everybody involved. Employees have reduced commute time, job opportunities not limited by geography, a more comfortable work environment. Employers have a far wider talent pool to hire from... and pay for less office space. It's a win/win, and I expect this to continue to grow.
I've wondered if this will help revitalize rural areas that have seen so much brain-drain and loss of economic opportunity during my lifetime. If geography is no longer the obstacle it used to be for getting a decent job... that changes everything. There are parts of the country where you can buy a livable house for less than the cost of a new pickup. There are towns that will GIVE you a house if you can remain employed, pay taxes, and live there a while. Now these aren't particularly desirable places to live obviously. But compared to a high-cost city where you never have any hope of owning your own home? That'll appeal to a lot of people.
Personally I prefer to live in or near a city... but that's in no small part because there are far better opportunities. A ton of career fields just aren't available in rural areas. If location/employment wasn't a factor, I'd probably be hiding from the rest of humanity out in the desert.
I have the option of working from home or working in the office. I occasionally go in the office but am housed in a large space with other employees, one that sounds like a haggard troll. She def. distracts me from my work and makes it difficult to do my job.
Working from home (with 3 young kids) is a godsend. Should one get sick I can put them in bed with some popsicles and a good movie and check on them occasionally without having to burn a day of PTO.
Yeah I’ve been working from home full time for 5 years now and it is awesome. Was allowed 2-3 days a week remote prior to that but was still tied to the office location. Now I’m free to go live/work anywhere and chose SW Washington. No income tax, scenery here is awesome with ability to fit the coast, mountains, rain forests and deserts all in one day trip. But most importantly it is the time saved. No longer throwing away 2hrs of every day to a commute. I can’t imagine going back to that. May try the expat thing at some point. I have one coworker currently living and working from France with his family. Like one long European vacation.
What line of work do you do?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
