To update my previous blog post about the uncertainty of my salaried work, this is now sorted and I am so pleased that I won’t have to travel to the windowless cave-office [yipee]. Instead I have managed to negotiate home-working from the end of June. This means I can carry on working up to my retirement at the end of the year.
It is still a period of change in the office, as my co-workers are all being transferred to the precariousness of a new organisation that will be delivering the service or have successfully found different jobs to avoid the fun and games of the reorganisation. Either way, I am going to miss seeing them all every week, hearing their news and helping them plan their holidays [I can’t help taking on this planning role for people whether they want it or not – I really missed my vocation as a travel agent].
So now my mind is turning to the pros and cons of home-working. Will I lose the plot and miss other people so much that after just a few weeks I am talking to myself and have forgotten all my social skills [those who know me will ask what social skills]? Will I miss the regular requests for money for leaving presents, wedding presents, new baby presents etc? Will I be the person that sits in the local cafe relying on their WiFi and making one cup of coffee last hours just so that I can be around other people? Or will I love the freedom to be able to put the washing in the machine as a break from the PC and rustle up our evening meal at lunch time? Will I rattle through my work load and be even more productive because there are no interruptions? Who knows.
I already work from home two days a week as a travel writer and so I have my home office space organised and I think I have the discipline to stop work, pack it all away and not look at it again until my next working day. I will be able to keep in touch on the telephone but I will also meet with my manager and other colleagues at least once a month and I hope that will be enough to stop me being too isolated.
On the finance and savings front I think it is a win-win. Although I will have heating costs from working at home [unless I spend lots of time in the cafe] I won’t have travel costs plus I will be earning money that I wasn’t expecting to be earning just a couple of months ago. I always take in my own lunch [but no more office microwave for heating up left overs] so that cost won’t change. Currently my employer generously pays for the numerous cups of tea and coffee I drink during the day, so I will miss that perk.
And yet every day I am working at home I will remember that at least I have a window and a view of our gardens.
Back on the road again 
When I started working at home (forced into self-employment) the difficulty was convincing everyone around me that I was actually working! Sure it was great with a new found independence….. (it is dry today, must cut the grass), but thus led to; “Make sure you have the vacuuming and dusting done while I am at work!”, phone calls from my mum asking if I could call around etc etc. After all I was “at home” all day every day. Whilst my work did allow some flexibility, I found it difficult to structure proper working hours with all the surrounding distractions. However, would I swap that to go back and sit in an office?…… not in this lifetime! As you already work from home 2 days per week, you may find that transition easier than most. Good luck and well done in securing your work until your retirement 🙂
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Thanks for your comment … I particularly take comfort from your comment that you wouldn’t return to an office base. I think I will like it too.
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