Image credits - https://www.ringover.com/img/blog/big/13-remote-working-2.png

With internet coverage practically available everywhere in the world, every one of us is aware of what Coronavirus a.k.a COVID-19 is and the ripple effects it's having across the IT Industry. In most countries, the intensity of the situation demanded a mandatory need to stay home, practice social distancing along with an enforced lockdown to flatten the curve. However as SaaS has to have a Business Continuity Plan irrespective of circumstances, the whole eco-system transitioned into remote working or rather, work from home.

Now, this led to very interesting insights into the whole work-from-home paradigm, some of which are already documented on Dev.to

However, my post isn't an addition to best practices towards WFH (have included one at the bottom, though 😌) but a little corollary based on my experience. With people gradually coming to terms with remote work being the new normal, this is also an attempt to engage with fellow developers here (i.e: you) to understand the mindset, rationale, and viewpoints behind it.

Let me start off by listing some advantages/disadvantages of remote work.

Pros

1. It helps save a lot of time traveling to and fro from office. For e.g: The average time spent on commuting in Mumbai is ~2.5-3 hours.
2. You can focus your energies on your spouse/kids, parents/elderly family members which is one way to achieve a personal work-life balance.
3. There's always an extra hand to help out in household chores.
4. Organizations save on operational expenditure by not having to operate/maintain a dedicated workspace, relocate employee talent across geographies.
5. You're in charge of your own schedule and productivity.

Cons

1. If a strict schedule/discipline isn't adhered to, office hours will most likely overlap into personal time thus disrupting the work-life balance outlined above.
2. Remote work requires people to communicate frequently which can be very tedious if there's a lack of high-speed internet connectivity, power outages, and software/hardware failure (VPN issues anyone? 😰)
3. Too many meetings/calls since little things that can be explained by walking over to a co-worker's desk will now need to be done virtually.
4. A possible feeling of isolation since there will be little personal interaction which doesn't occur as much when working in a dedicated office.
5. Family members, kids and/or pets can be a distraction sometimes.

PS: As promised, here is article1 and article2 for getting the best out of yourselves while doing work from home 😀

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What are some of the pros & cons you've experienced in remote work?