After Months...The Home Office Is Finally Up And Running

When we were looking for a new home, we needed a few things. We wanted a room for each child and because there were three left at home, that didn't seem that big of a requirement. And we needed a home office. I had been telecommuting almost two years when covid hit and I made the decision long ago that if I can help it, I don't want to work away from home again.

The home office was what we needed.

The home we chose did not have the rooms, but it had room to grow. No problem--I can work in the garage. I knew this because I worked in an unfinished basement for over two years. And so I worked in the garage. And things went well until it got cold. 

Too cold.

Since the basement was not yet finished, I moved into the master bedroom. This had its advantages--warmth, for one. And, I could literally roll out of bed and log on. And so I worked in the master bedroom.

Last week the basement was finished. The boys moved downstairs, my daughter moved out of the smallest bedroom in the house into the larger room next door, and I hauled in the big desk from the garage and set everything up. This morning, I rolled out of bed and went into another room and worked my shift.

I know it's not the biggest journey, garage to bedroom to office, but it represents a months--even years--of transition, a lot of changes. It's not a room built specifically for an office with double doors and built-in shelving, but I don't care. It's a place dedicated to providing for the family. Many have helped us reach this point and I'm grateful for that help. Tomorrow, it's off to work I'll go...only now, to the right room.

Same Job...But Can't Beat The Commute!

A few months ago I floated the idea to my supervisor (when he asked what he could do to improve my working situation and "a raise" is not one of the options...) of telecommuting. I've been with the same employer for over twenty years. In that time I've thought about what it would be like to work at home, but it always seemed like something out of reach, something that happened to other employees.

But not me.

Three weeks ago, I met again with my supervisor and he mentioned that if I was serious about telecommuting, I needed to send him and his boss an e-mail. "Sure," I told him. That was on a Thursday. The next day I worked--the next Monday--I sent the e-mail not really expecting anything to come from it. Not that my boss or his boss didn't want to help, mind you. It's just that things like this don't happen overnight.

Apparently, I was wrong.

The next day I got a message to call my boss. I did and he said my request had been approved and that I should get my house ready for me to work from home. Exactly one week from that call, my new computer and a new phone were sitting on a desk we bought off of KSL Classified and I was working in my basement, surrounded by food storage. We do not have an extra room in our little home, or a home office, but that's okay. I don't need a lot of space and what we cleared out works.

Not every employee can work at home. They have to keep up on their work and keep a better-than-average efficiency rating. In exchange, the employer trusts the worker to do their job on their own, to be driven to keep up on their work, and to take initiative with little supervision. And, the commute can't be beat.

I've worked and even supervised telecommuters in my career. I don't know what I thought it would be like, but it is strange. It's like I'm at work, except without cubicle walls and the occasional ping-pong battle. Pluses (beside the lack of a commute...) I can just come up for lunch and I get to use my own bathroom. So far for me, it's a win-win-win.