Weekend Open Forum: Your thoughts on working from home

Okay, I do freelance work so I tend to work only from home. I get work done, yes, sometimes hammering away on a project straight from waking up to going to sleep, but there tends to be a lot of distractions too on occasion with personal affairs. Also, when you work for home, you don't have that sense of being in a place of work, where that's all you pretty much do, just work, and the atmosphere and group energy of the daily grind(s). I might be speaking for myself, but I find it very motivating when I'm surrounded by other people working (sometimes towards the same objective).

Obviously like people already pointed out, if everyone could work from home how great it would be on the environment, agreed, but America for example, already has an obesity problem... this could make things significantly worse.

Don't forget this part of it:http://thestir.cafemom.com/pregnancy/151799/yahoo_ceo_marissa_mayer_has

YEP! If I'm in the house, the wife needs to talk. Ever try to write a document with someone chatting at you?

The subject is loaded with emotional issues and all the supposed advantages don't always materialize. The flip side is that all of the disadvantages DO materialize. Managers HATE telecommuting as they can't see you and therefore don't feel in control (awe), let alone have any means to measure productivity.

Of course there's a whole raft of collaboration software for group participation, but it takes more effort+time to use this stuff than would to just walk over and have a brief chat.

As a programmer, I found it better even for me to be onsite. Issues were more readily solved and even as the worker, I felt more productive.

Frequently that is called a 4-40 plan; 4 days totaling 40 hours. I've seen that in several places in my career.

I don't really have the option to work from home. I (almost - 53 days until I do ) own a copy shop, so I have come to work and manage employees and help customers. Occasionally I will come in on a Saturday or Sunday when we are closed, which is kinda like work from home since no one else is here. Judging from the times I have come in on weekends, I don't think I would like to work form home all the time because I would miss the interaction with my employees and customers.

We had the 9/80 at the city of la computer department where we worked 9 days every 2 weeks. Before I got there there was a 4 day 10 hour workweek for some grandfathered. It IS difficult to work from home with another person there, but I do some remote administration of home computers as a part time business. It is sometimes necessary just to go out to lunch to get out of the other person's hair. I try to go out almost everyday, whether I work or not, unless climate prevents it. I think we have to embrace work at home more with the price of gas, road crowding, and the pollution. When it snows a severe snow in this Chicago area it can take 5 hours to travel to your job ONE WAY, and it's getting ever more crowded, with people moving further into the boonies.

There are MANY times I wish I could work from home. But as a manager of a retail business I understand the need to have a physical presence in the store. Of course the mice will play whilst the cat is away. The big problem I see that on some level we all need to get away from work. When you work from home, despite the non stop interuptions from family, you have no way to get away from it. Your home is supposed to be your own little fortress of security. When I leave work and go home, I do my very best to not do anything work related unless I really have to. This way I have the seperation that allows me to keep what little sanity that I have left. Work is work. Home is home. Atleast thats what works for me. I do the 6/60 every week so I take the seperation where I can.

I don't consider this to be a good move on Yahoo's part. The way they put it made it look like they simply don't trust their employees and I wouldn't work in an environment like that.

My employer allows me to work remotely and I think you can be just as productive as when you're actually at the office. I usually go to the office, but use the opportunity to do a home office every now and then. I'd say I'm even more productive at home at times than when at the office. I get to manage 'what distracts me' way better at home.

9-5 is like a dogma that we should get out of asap. It's like having to go to a physical class room to actually attend lectures at your university, that would be ridiculous with today's technology. Oh wait...

I work from home on a full time basis, and I've been doing so for the past 6 years. The company I work for is in another state.

I don't think I'll ever be able to work in an office ever again (that is just my opinion and the way I am). I just don't like certain the politic that you can find in certain offices (call me anti-social, but I'm more productive if I don't have people around me while I'm working).

Don't get me wrong, working from home is not for everybody. The biggest "disadvantage" is that you can easily be distracted. Another disadvantage is that most people think that "you don't work" since you're at work. You tend to often work overtime because even though the employees in the office leave at 5pm on the dot, you're still in your "workplace/home".

I guess it's all about discipline.

I work from home pretty much every day, I appreciate the fact that I can and so I always put in the hours. We have a number of people here who do the same.

Positive points... I use no fuel getting to work (And no money of course) , I save 2 hours travelling time, it's quiet with very few interruptions and we have a great communication system that allows me to talk worldwide to people.

Negative points... It can get a bit too quiet, sometimes I don't speak to anyone for days, the lack of human face to face interaction is missed. I remedy this by going to the shops each day and sometimes having others come and work at my house.

Conclusion, It's great, but you need to make sure you go out and talk to real people each day

Being a business owner automatically makes me the boss so I work from home. Occasionally I have to get off my butt & visit my clients but that's not a problem. Years ago I worked for a boss & found it more stressful than I do today. I especially found it difficult taking orders from a woman (apart from my mom) so I'd really hate working for Marissa Meyer. Call it what you will but that's just me.