If your boss gave you the green light to work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, you probably feel pretty lucky. And you should! But working at home is not for lightweights. It takes an incredible amount of discipline, structure, and the ability to block out distractions. While you might expect that you’ll get more work done now that you’re not being thwarted by coworkers’ conversations, strange smells emanating from the break room microwave, or your boss incessantly standing over your shoulder, the reality is that telecommuting is tougher than seems. As you adapt to being a remote professional, you should know what you’re getting into. This is the expectation versus reality of working at home in the age of coronavirus.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #1
Expectation: You will get up early and get a jump on the day’s to-do list.
Reality: You sleep in until 10:30 a.m. and decide to spend the first half of your day eating doughnuts and watching doomsday coverage of coronavirus on the news.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #2
Expectation: You will shower, primp, and dress for working at home like you would for a regular workday.
Reality: You never bother changing out of your pajamas and bathrobe, much less shower.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #3
Expectation: You will keep your nose to the grindstone and your hands off your junk.
Reality: One hour into working from home, you’ve already cued up the porn and are preparing for a jack-off marathon.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #4
Expectation: You will work indoors all morning, then eat lunch outside.
Reality: You decide to work outside, but it’s too bright to see your laptop screen, so you give up on work altogether. It's too beautiful a day to have your face in a screen anyway.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #5
Expectation: You will listen to a calming classical playlist that will keep you relaxed, but focused while you work.
Reality: You’re singing along and air-drumming so hard that you don’t get any work done.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #6
Expectation: You will eat three balanced meals just like you usually would on a workday.
Reality: You eat. All. Goddamn. Day.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #7
Expectation: Your pets will be the perfect coworkers.
Reality: Your pets are sabotaging your work at every opportunity.
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Expectation vs Reality Working From Home #8
Expectation: You will isolate all day, as instructed by the CDC (and for productivity's sake, of course).
Reality: You're not getting anything done, so you declare happy hour at 3 p.m. and invite your bros over.
