This is just down to nothing more then poor discipline and lazily wanting an office to fill the gap for you. I have been working from home for 9 years now, 5 days a week. You know how I solve the issue, I go outside. I go and run. I take my dogs out for a walk. I also meet with friends to eat / drink coffee. I look after myself. The time I save commuting means I can do things like cook myself a proper lunch, go and have a nap if I did not sleep great the night before. I have much more freedom to balance my life. I agree though, if I sit at my desk all day inside and then stop work to go and sit on the couch and watch Netflix, sure it's going to be detrimental to my mental health.
Also the only social part I referenced was coffee with close friends. I think drinking a coffee with an understanding friend(s) is much easier then being around 20+ colleagues for 8 hours straight.
Point being, everyone is different in this regard.
Just because someone has extreme social anxiety doesn't mean they permanently refuse to take action. Sometimes they succeed in actively overcoming it and are capable of forming connections. Being in an environment where you can passively observe the character of others does tend to make it easier to approach them on the days when you're feeling up to it. A person might choose to work in an office because they understand this benefit of consistent forced exposure.
Maybe you like the office more and can’t make wfh work, not everyone can! But don’t assume everyone else is like you
Why? You have to put in the effort to be social, but you need to do that in person, too.
I have been working remotely for my entire work life (11 years employed, about 5 years freelance) and I am a very happy person.
To be fair, I'm also developed some very strong friendships over the internet (through videogames), so i guess i have a lot of experience in the field
I've worked from home 100%, worked from an office 100%, and worked a combination. Overall, I think the combination is best. However, having put in somewhere on the order of 15 years fully remote, it has not caused any problems for me. I chat with people via IM, including both purely social and problem solving discussions. I've been on teams where everyone was remote and ones where I was the only remote, and in areas in between.
Overall, working remotely is good for some people and not for others; much like every other arrange. It takes skill and effort to get good at, just as in person social interactions do. Some companies make it easier than others.
It's a complicated topic, and I really don't think it's possible to say "it's good" or "it's bad", only "it depends".
I wouldn't be surprised if people who don't have local family or established friends in the area and live in cities where talking to strangers is considered threatening behavior tend to socialize primarily, if not exclusively, with co-workers.
hi. Been completely remote for 5+ years. My mental is better than ever.
> You'll realize by the end of it just how important water cooler conversation is for your BRAIN
I would much rather use all the saved time NOT going to an office and instead spend it with people I care about more having more interesting conversations in a more comfortable environment.
> The latter is years upon years of feeling disconnected, left out, and sidelined.
I empathize with some of the isolation that WFH can bring, but I also strongly disagree that it is an inevitability. WFH gives you more freedom with your time and doesn't force you into social interaction by default which, depending on the person, can be a good or a bad thing.
I think it just highlights the importance of CONCIOUSLY choosing our social interactions which might take more effort but I think results in higher satisfaction. You could look at it like junk food vs. nutritious food. One is convenient, leaves you wanting more, and is probably not as healthy if that's all you take in. The other fills you up more, sometimes takes a bit more work, and ends up being more sustainable long term.
This year WFH have been a significant mental health improvement. I am more social outside of work and I am more productive during work.
I am dealing with an insane amount of issues that would have never happened if everyone was in the same office.
It really depends on the culture of the company and the team, and it appears that mine has not managed to change enough (whatever they claim).
Any source or data for this assertion.
On the other hand there is people out there, like me, that have been improving and refining remote working skills from decades.
When I traveled to former Soviet Republics it shocked me how helpless old people felt doing the most basic things. As young people they were trained to delegate everything on the State. The State did a very bad job almost at everything but there was no alternative, so they never developed the skills .
When they were old,it is difficult to learn anything new and they had not the necessary skills to survive on their own and were nostalgic about communism.
That made me realize that most schools and Universities and jobs just train you to obey orders and do not leave space for resourcefulness and independence.
There is a big different between WFH for a few months where EVERYONE else is also WFH ... and WFH for YEARS where some, or most, of the others are in office.
The latter is years upon years of feeling disconnected, left out, and sidelined. The vast majority of companies even if they allow remote are not remote first. Remote first involves actual structural and procedural changes.
Lastly, WFH for years can result in a serious mental health decline. If you think you're doing fine after 1 year, come see me after 5. You'll realize by the end of it just how important water cooler conversation is for your BRAIN. You'll recognize just how bad it can be to see (as a function of your time alive) MOSTLY just your home. It does a number on you.