I do not miss the 2 hours of commute. I get far more done working from home.
I am not sure what the future holds, but I will push for more remote work if I have the option.
Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
131–140 of 153 posts
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#132I'm enjoying it while it lasts.... pretty sure it won't last.
Human nature and micro-managers will get back on top of things in short order.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#133Commuting by car when remote is an option is environmentally irresponsible. It's also bad for my health and I hate doing it. I'm never going back to the office.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#134Ron Swanson put it best. I don't have coworkers, I have workplace proximity associates. I don't particularly care to be around the people I work with so being at home has probably kept me in this job longer than it would have otherwise. Also they built us a new office building right before they sent us all home and they're taking me out of an office where I can close the door and putting me in an open air cube farm.…
I have a few fantastic co-workers that I'd happily spend a day in the office with. Unfortunately, I have a few fantastically terrible co-workers that outweigh the benefits of being with the good ones. I've become incredibly office averse.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#135Earlier quoted context omitted.
I try and stick to 25 min focused work, 5 min of whatever, repeat.
That always feel so unrealistic to me. Do you guys really feel recharged after a 5 minute break? Thats just enough to visit the toilet and get a drink. It would mean you are focused 7 hours out of 8. Seems very unrealistic to me.
The usual "pomodoro" schedule I see also includes a half-hour break every 4 or so focus sessions. The 5 minute break is more to remind you to stand up and get a few stretches - and also to give your brain the prospect of the break as a "reward" if only you start now.
When I was doing it consistently for a while, a productive day looked like a 30-45 mins of emails + standup, 4 pomodoros, lunch, 4 pomodoros, break, 2-3 pomodoros. However, there always seems to be meetings scattered around, and a more typical day would only get 6-8 pomodoros of focus time.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#136I really miss working from the office and am eager to go back when it is safe.
Unlike others that have posted here with that opinion, I hold no view that my coworkers are family or even close friends. Regardless, even the small face-to-face socialization I get as part of my work in the office is something that fulfills me. I am invigorated by being able to go into a conference room and stand at a white board or just walk to someone's desk, and try to hash out solutions to problems we are working on. It's just not the same on Slack.
I am single and live alone, so that is a big factor in that.
I also live within a few blocks of my office, so re-adding a commute into my day is a healthy thing, not a huge environmental and personal time drain.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#137I am currently looking for a work from home job making games or other complex systems... Reason is that when I did that in a office little would get done, not just endless meeting but people interrupting, distractions, and weird office-only issues (like drama, office politics, HR nagging people because they left books on their desk, etc...) At home even with family around, I can tell them it is my worktime, and then…
>> HR nagging people because they left books on their desk You just reminded me one more reason for me not to return office - we have policy that when leaving for the day employees must remove all extra items [ ] from the desk and put that into personal cabinet. extra items - everything apart from phone, display and keyboard + mouse.
Was that pre-pandemic or just a temporary policy to make things easier for cleaners in the evening?
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#138Earlier quoted context omitted.
That seems somewhat overly general and pessimistic. Some of us develop strong support relationships with our colleagues on our teams, which results in conversations and activities that happen well outside of work hours or premises, and lasting friendships that remain strong even years after they've parted ways with the company that brought us together.
I had this happen exactly once, and that was because we were friends outside of work before we were colleagues at work. Every other place, all of my "friends" at work, even those I had outside contact with via Facebook or beers, went radio silent when I moved on. It's not pessimistic, it's reality. Exceptions that prove the rules, etc.
I've had lifelong friends come from every job I've had. I can name many people from my last 3 jobs that I would want to (and will) get a beer with after the pandemic.
I don't think your experience is representative.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#139I dont want to go back for 5 days a week, I may be ok with 1 day in office and rest of the week WFH.
My team is anyways geographically spread. From office also I need to be on video conferencing. So doent make any difference.
Re: Ask HN: Who doesn’t want to go back to the office?
#140Why would I go back? My personal productivity and team productivity has soared AND I'm working fewer hours! Add in that I no longer have to commute, pay for parking, pay for lunches, pay for "business casual" clothes, work in an open area - this just gets more and more appealing!
Now I work in an office. With a door. Work-life balance? Never been better! I'm healthier, I exercise more, lost weight.
I can go on and on but no, I'm not going back.
My team has talked about meeting once-per-month or at the start of big initiatives to nail down some ideas. That's really about all you need for meeting face-to-face. We don't need the office anymore. It's over.