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When I first graduated from a local university, I started looking for a
stable and well-paid job. Armed with a degree in business studies, I went
through numerous ads in the newspapers and attended a few interviews. I
finally ended up as a business executive in a well-established firm. At
the interview, I was told that it was a 9 to 5 job and that it would entail
little traveling. However, it ahs been more than 7 years since I started
working and there has not been a single day when I left the office before 7
p.m. True, it was a well-paid job, but there was little else. A typical day
for me began at 5.30 in the morning when the alarm clock rang. Then, after a
quick shower and a hurried breakfast, I was
trudging off to work. Working for a strict boss who was quite
firm regarding working hours was not easy. Deadlines had to be adhered to as
he would not hesitate to take disciplinary action. Work demands were taking
a toll on my health and I was feeling really stressed and strapped for time.
Juggling home life with work life has never been so complicated. Working at
the same job for years with no promotion in sight, I finally gathered my
courage to say goodbye to my four-figure income. I wanted more from life and
decided to do something different. I longed to get away from set routines,
domineering bosses and impersonal
working places. I dreamed of a way to escape the
drudgery of an office job.
That was when I decided to work from home. It did not take me long to
find a job that required me to go to the office only once a month. Thanks to
computers, fax machines, cell phones and the Internet, I could work from the
comfort of my home. Working from home was such a relief from the
grind and monotony of an office job. I
determined my own working hours and I had greater control of my time
compared to the traditional 9 to 5 schedule. Setting my own working hours
allowed me to create a schedule that suited my lifestyle. With no rigid work
schedules or time clocks, I was able to concentrate and do my work more
efficiently.
There were also other benefits I enjoyed. I did not have to tolerate
cramped public transportation any longer nor do I have to put up with the
numerous traffic jams. I need not force myself to attend the business
lunches, often hurried and unappetizing. Moreover, the daily 60 minutes or
so that I spent commuting to and from work each day has now been converted
into productive work. Instead, the time wasted sitting in a car or bus is
now being used to read my e-mails, send message, make telephone calls or do
research. I also have the luxury of getting up later and enjoy reading the
newspaper while having a cup of steaming, freshly brewed coffee. I am not a
morning person who can wake up at the crack of dawn and work following a
rigid 8 hour schedule. Rather, I am a night person who prefers working late
into the night. |
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Although the writer worked as a business executive and was
well-paid, he was still disillusioned with his work which entailed long
working hours. He also felt stressed out and disappointed because he was not
given a promotion. Therefore, he decided to work from home. Consequently, he
had greater control of his time as eh could now set his own working hours.
He was thus able to concentrate on his work. He was also able to convert the
unproductive hours spent on commuting and lunch breaks into productive ones.
Moreover, he could dress as he pleased and work from any part of his house.
Working from home was both convenient and comfortable. However, there were
disadvantages too. he missed his colleagues and had to put up with many
distractions at home.
( 128 words ) |
