The pros and cons of not being able to stay home after working from home
It's a complete reversal of what used to happen when I had a regular job at the office
I love working remotely from home.
In the first few months of the year, I was a freelancer, so I had more freedom in terms of time and space.
Since April, I have a regular remote job, which includes time to start and finish. And I've noticed a few things that greatly impact my routine.
I have a lot of difficulty waking up, so I always get up with just an hour or less before starting work. That only gives me time to quickly read the news and listen to a podcast while having breakfast.
After eight hours of working alone at home, I desperately need to go outside. I feel like a dog needing a walk. It's not that I miss the office, but it's undeniable that working from home is lonely.
It's a complete reversal of what used to happen. After spending hours in an office, all you want to do when you get home is lay on the couch and do nothing.
Spending all day in your home has its advantages. As you need to go for a walk, it's a motivation to go to the gym, which I've been able to do three or four times a week. I went to the cinema twice this week, something I probably hadn't done since college. I can enjoy each destination as a local, doing what people do. If I'm in São Paulo, I can meet up with friends during the week, which is great to avoid overcrowding weekends.
But there are also many cons. When you leave the house every day, you don't know when you'll return. Sometimes a simple visit to the bakery ends up with arriving home late (and increases the chances of drinking during the week). When you leave the house every day, even if you don't come back so late, there's less time for studying languages, reading a book, or writing this newsletter. When you leave the house every day, you arrive more tired. When you leave the house every day, you invariably spend more money.
I'm on a learning curve. I need to find a middle ground. Trying to wake up earlier is practically impossible (as I said, we need to be honest with ourselves), so I need to better balance my nights.
An alternative is to work a few days in cafes. I've mentioned before I really enjoy working from cafes. However, where I am currently located, there are no good cafes nearby.
Additionally, another thing I have noticed is that when you are a freelancer it is easier to work from cafes than when you have a regular remote job (the internet needs to be reliable, meetings happen all the time, etc, which is more assured at home).
Too much freedom isn't always good.