The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically changed the world of work. Many companies who never imagined letting their employees work from home were forced to adapt to the changing times. Working from home tends to be glorified among the working population, and although it has immense benefits, there are also some downsides people often don’t realize.

If you are considering working from home, take a look at the following pros and cons to help you decide if this is the right choice for you. If you’re already working from home, let us know in the comments if you agree with these points and what other pros and cons you can think of!

3 Pros of Working from Home

1)      Comfortable work environment.

Being able to wear pajamas while sitting on the couch and earning money is one of the greatest feelings in the world. There’s nothing that beats the comfort of home and being able to work how you want without the disturbance and judgment of others. 

Even if you have online meetings, all you really have to do is put on a presentable shirt, but no one can say anything about what you have down under!

2)      Save time and money.

We often underestimate how much time we spend getting to and from work, as well as the money we spend on transportation and other work-related costs. The average American takes 52 minutes a day to commute to work, so that’s almost 7 hours a week that you can gain by working from home! 

There’s also time saved from getting ready in the morning, unwinding after work and making small talk with every colleague you come across. All this extra time and money can be spent instead on your hobbies, on a vacation, with your loved ones or anything else you want! 

3)      Flexible working hours.

Outside of scheduled meetings, your working hours are a lot more flexible when you’re working from home than in the office. As long as you get your tasks done on time and produce the desired results, employers normally don’t care how you get there. If you get your tasks done early, there’s no need to look busy while waiting for the clock to strike. 

For jobs that allow complete flexibility, you can arrange your work time around when you’re most productive. If you’re not a morning person, you can wake up and start work a little later. If you’re most productive at night, you can do most of your tasks then. It makes sense that we can do our best work when we’re feeling most awake and productive.

An awesome work-from-home job with a low barrier to entry is teaching English online. Click here to learn how you can get started!

3 Cons of Working from Home

1)      Lack of social interactions.

If you have a good relationship with your colleagues and look forward to those breaks or lunch-time interactions with them, then unfortunately, you’ll be missing all that if you work from home. For sure you can have hangouts online, but it won’t be the same. 

If you want to maintain your social relationships with your colleagues, you’ll have to actively schedule get-togethers and meet them outside of work. Or perhaps you can even meet at a coffee shop and do your work together!

2)      Lack of boundaries between life and work.

One of the dangers of working from home is your home life can start to feel like an office. If you do not make a clear distinction between your work hours and your off-work hours, then they may mix together and you’ll constantly be feeling the pressures of work even though you’re off shift. This can lead to burnout and lower productivity. (Click here to learn about how to avoid burnout when working from home.)

One way to prevent feeling like you’re living at work is to create a physically separate environment dedicated to work. It could be a table in the corner of the living room or a whole room converted to an office if you have that luxury. 

3)      Less fresh air and exercise.

Not having to go to the office means you have the option to vegetate throughout the day. Nothing will force you to get out of the house or to walk around. If you don’t have the motivation or discipline to get some fresh air and exercise, you can really let yourself go when working from home.

One way to prevent this is to give yourself a small daily goal of just going out for a 10-minute walk. Set the bar low to get you started and when you’re outside, you’ll likely walk for a longer time as you realize you really need the fresh air and exercise. 

What are some other pros and cons you can think of in regards to working from home? Share them in the comments below!