Why Would You Work at Home?

It’s the ultimate fantasy for everyone who’s ever been on the 9-to-5 rat race and who’s had to battle more than an hour of heavy EDSA traffic on the way to work—working from home, discussing business strategy with a distant client, in your ratty tees and flannel pajamas.

I must confess I’ve been living that life since 2008 and it’s been fun. Of course, that joke about getting “paid per word, per project or perhaps” still applies to this life but I have no complaints so far.

I’m my own boss.

I work the hours that’s most convenient to me—with a few adjustments here and there when clients need me. And the coffee (or in my case, tea) breaks could stretch for hours. And don’t get me started on the lunch breaks, heh.

I learn new stuff every single day.

I meet new people from around the world regularly—and not just my clients.

I can declare days off and holidays unilaterally whenever my feet are itching to visit travel destinations...or just need to pop into the grocery store to stock up on supplies

What’s not to like?

It’s not a perfect situation though.

For one, I only have my laptop for company. In my previous day job, I used to bedevil work colleagues with pesky questions and light gossip when I needed a work break. Now, I can’t even get hold of my friends for a Skype chat because they’re either (1) sleeping, because they’re working their clients’ time zones, or (2) hard at work in their day jobs.

For another, it requires superhuman self-discipline just to start the work day, meet deadlines, and avoid the thousand and one distractions that zing in and out of your computer screen and home office.

And don’t even get me started on clients who think your talent is worth pennies but expect amazing feats of derring-do on your work station.

Still, if you achieve a nice balance between slaving away the whole day before your computer and client requirements, you’ve got a nice fit going on right there.

Thinking of working at home? Share your own reasons why you’d want to. Or if you're already a work-at-home warrior, share your stories straight from the trenches (or your bedroom-office).