Working from Home

Someone asked me recently about working from home.  They, like me, had someone they wanted to care for but needed a full-time income.  Knowing that I worked from home, they asked me what type of jobs would allow that option.

I’ve done a lot of research into telework or telecommuting.  Having worked full-time from home for the past year, I want to say it’s not as easy as it would seem.  If you are thinking about working from home, consider the following.

What Jobs can be Performed from Home?
The first consideration is the amount of interaction you need with others to be able to do your job well.  Do you need to be able to talk to people face-to-face or could you accomplish as much using a phone, email, or maybe a webcam?  I’m fortunate in that my office was already located offsite from the main facility.  People who wanted to interact with me were used to calling or emailing me but I still participated in a lot of meetings where I went to see my “customer.”  A lot of people want that face-to-face interaction with you so even if you work from home, there may be times you need to go on-site to be “seen.”  Therefore, you have to decide if the position you are considering can be done strictly from home or do you need to split your time between the on-site office and your home office.

What Will your Hours of Work be?
When you work from home, you’re always at your office.  Lynn interrupts me a lot during my “workday” so I tend to work from the time I get up until I go to bed plus I work seven days a week.  This allows me to make up lost time from his interruptions and to keep up with my workload (which is significant.) I can do this in my job because I do a lot of independent project work and I’m exempt (meaning I don’t earn overtime). However, if you have customers who expect you to be available 8-5, you would not have that flexibility.  Plus if you earn overtime, you would have to clock in and out multiple times to keep accurate hours.

How would you handle it if your job needed you at the same time the person you are caring for needed you?  It’s difficult.  I do it all the time so it can be done but it’s not easy and it’s often frustrating.  I have both a speakerphone and a Bluetooth device so I can carry on conversations while caring for Lynn.  However, it’s also very distracting to do that and you can miss things both from the person who is speaking and the one you’re caring for.

The other thing about working every day, all day, is that it’s very tiring. You never get away from work. I check my email every time I walk by my computer. I have a Blackberry, a cell phone, a house phone, and my computer mail that I check on a regular basis to keep up with my job. I’ve often been on my cell phone when my house phone rang–both calls being work-related.  Some people have all three numbers because they know me well.  Others, I do not want to know my personal numbers so they only have my Blackberry number. Privacy, therefore, is another issue to consider–both your own and the confidentiality of customer information that you may have.

What about Equipment and Resources?
Will your employer give you equipment to use?  What about the cost of internet service, long-distance phone calls, office supplies, fax machines?  I have a phone line and a fax line that I pay for as well as my internet service.  What happens if one of my lines goes down?  I can’t work at home.  That may mean taking the day off or finding a way to go to work.  If I have to go to work, then I have to find a sitter for Lynn.  That’s not easy to do in the middle of the day.

Do you Need Social Interaction?
As a caregiver, your world is often limited to the person you are caring for.  Most of your time, energy, and social life revolve around that person.  If you also work from home, you almost become totally isolated.  I miss the people I work with.  I’m an introvert but I liked being able to talk to others and share in conversations with other adults.  It was fun to catch a lunch out on occasion and see the pictures of new grandchildren or hear about vacations.  You miss all that when you work from home.  People forget about you. They forget to share their news with you and assume you know about changes happening in the office or company that are discussed in meetings you can’t attend or in hallway conversations.  It’s difficult to feel a part of the group when you no longer share in the daily challenges.  Working from home is very isolating.

The Advantages of Working from Home
Now there’s the good side, too.  I never put on make-up.  I don’t fix my hair and I wear comfortable clothes and slippers. The trip to my office is less than 30 seconds away.  I save gas, rarely need new clothes, and no one can see my expression when I’m attending a meeting through airwave connections (which I admit is sometimes a really good thing).  I also don’t catch the latest cold or virus going around so I stay healthier.

I can give Lynn the care and support he needs.  I can make sure his needs are met in the way he wants them met. I can provide both his physical and emotional support.  But just as those are good things, they are also bad things because it also means I never am free from those responsibilities.  I save a ton of money by caring for him myself.  I don’t, in fact, know how I could afford to get someone to care for him if I could not work from home.

Conclusion
You might consider working from home if:

• You don’t need a lot of social interaction
• Your job can be done primarily by telephone or electronically
• Your hours can be flexible
• You have backup care in case you need to go into the office
• You can handle not being away from your caregiving responsibilities–EVER
• You are extremely good at multi-tasking and keeping two trains of thought going at the same time all the time

I have to say it’s not for everyone. It’s been a blessing for me.  I’m very thankful I have this option and I fear the day that I might not have it.  That’s the other thing…your employer can always pull the plug on your being able to work from home.  So always, somewhere in the back of your mind, you’re wondering how long you’ll be able to keep everyone happy so nothing changes.  It’s a lot of stress.  It’s a really good option but keeps in mind that most people who work from home, just work from home–they are not also trying to care for someone.  I would say that doing so is VERY rare; not impossible, but unusual.

Good luck if you’re considering this option.  Let me know if you have any questions for me.