I started my tech career, officially, in 2012. In 2013 I started working from home and continued working remotely until July of last year when I joined SuperFile to get to know more folks in the area.
You would think transitioning back to remote work these past two weeks would be easy, and some of it has been, but there are definitely differences that have me trying to adjust again in ways I didn’t expect.
I have more time
First, I have more time… much more time.
That wouldn’t seem like a problem but for the last year my work consumed my life entirely. While the new free time is wonderful, I find myself feeling guilty for it. I feel like I should be working more and, as a result, have spent a lot more hours than I probably should reading about our tech and org. That’s not a bad thing, but it isn’t a requirement anymore either. Learning to take time without guilt is going to take me a bit longer than I thought it would.
The house is quiet
My home office is tiny and perfect for me. I can focus and get things done. Somewhere over the last year, however, I learned to embrace the chaos of people coming in and out of my office all day long and the quiet is proving to be more of a challenge than I thought it would be.
When I can remember how to channel all the quiet into focus it will be great but so far that hasn’t been too easy. I’ll get there.
I miss the commute itself
While I don’t miss how long I could spend commuting downtown, which ranged from 15 minutes to 2.5 hours depending on the day, I miss the quiet time on the bus. It was a bit of an escape for me and I could use it to read, browse my phone or even just reflect. It wasn’t much but it was my time during the day and a time I had learned to value it. That I miss.
In the end, none of these are bad problems and I will adjust just as I did before. I just find it kind of interesting that I have to at all.