Home office is pointless: 3 reasons against unproductive work at home

home office or Office ? Opinions have been divided on this for many years. Flexible working is very fashionable, but again and again decide itself Companys against it. 3 reasons why this is correct - because working from home is simply pointless.

Why is home office pointless?

When a few years ago the decision IBM discussed abolishing the home office, it was the second after Yahoo ITcompany that took this step. I still remember it well: In 2004 I published my second book, "Sales and working techniques for the field service". The book is now in its fifth edition.

But when I submitted the first manuscript to the publisher, the editor asked for a chapter on the subject of home office. I hadn't originally planned that, because I wanted to write something about sales and distribution and less about the subject of self-organization. Nevertheless, I complied with the lecturer's request.

Just because it's fashionable doesn't mean it's good

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I admit, I first had to Internet do some research to get some ideas of what to write about in a chapter like this. At that time, I already had twelve years of home office experience behind me. Since then, however, I have been at home with my employees in a large office building for three years. Even then I was able to examine both sides of the coin quite objectively.

Today is Work-Life-Balance very fashionable due to flexible workplace solutions and is offered by more and more employers. Reason enough to take a look at working from home and its disadvantages and dangers. What do I mean by that?

From Yahoo to IBM: 3 reasons against working from home

1. Comfort hurts productivity: When you work from home, you have access to a wide range of conveniences. Too great a convenience, too great a comfort is not good for your productivity. Working from home can be devastating to your productivity, quality of life, marriage, children, and the overall success of your business. When you make yourself comfortable, you are less active. Being less active means that you are not reaching your full potential, especially your sales potential. Working from home is very dangerous because you may be too relaxed about it.
2. Too much self-discipline is necessary: IBM's decision to end the home office is currently being discussed. IBM is not alone in this. Do you know what the first official decision of the new Yahoo boss Mrs. Marissa Mayer was? She issued a ban on working from home. One reason was productivity, the other reason it's not a company's idea! The idea of ​​a company is that people work together there and a certain philosophy is internalized and communicated, which also results in new ideas. Working together in a team can also be very motivating and productive. I can understand Marissa Mayer. In my team, too, there is always the idea of ​​working from home one day a week. With all love: that makes no sense!...especially not with our small team of 20 employees. And when I now look at the direct sales positions, such as telephone sales, I say: impossible! There are too many distractions, too high a demand for self-discipline.
3. Too much distraction: When working successfully from home, everything depends on self-discipline. If you want results, you need incredible self-discipline. Your home is full of distractions: your partner, your children, your pets, the TV, your computer, your smartphone, your couch and your own bed for a quick nap. Believe me, only the really disciplined can be productive in this environment. Many companies around the world offer their employees to work from home at least once a week. If you ask these employees, over 50% say that they are happier with this arrangement. I bet you will be happier with it, but are you productive at it? If your own kitchen is only a few feet away from your workplace and it regularly invites you to take a break, or if your TV is in the same room you want to work in, then a home office is 99% for everyone, at least for them As far as productivity is concerned, the worse solution. I still remember how it was at the beginning of my time in sales, when I was still a sales representative with home office. My partner was of the opinion that the moment I got home, I would accompany her to the grocery store, bring the laundry down, take the groceries out of the cart, take away the rubbish, empty the dishwasher, briefly mow the lawn, for any Could watch things briefly and so on. My productivity on days like this was just above zero. Without question: it was nice to spend the day in my familiar surroundings and with my partner, but my productivity and my success were below average on these days.

3 important tips for working from home

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If you still want to work from home, I have 3 important tips for you:

1. Do you have fixed times: When does your workday begin? When are you going to break and when to leave?
2. Do you have a permanent office? Use a space that is only intended for your work! There is no TV in this room! There are no things you can distract! A space for maximum productivity.
3. Make Contracts: Make a written agreement with everyone in your household. An agreement that everyone signs: Write down when you go to work or to your home office, when you have a break and when the day ends for you. During this time, disturbances are completely prohibited. Everyone should sign it so that everyone really knows what it's about. It might be a radical move, but it's the only way to keep your productivity high.

Why Starbucks is better than working from home

A few days ago I had a podcast interview with entrepreneur Matthew Mockridge. We talked about offices and he said that he started his first start-up in a Starbucks coffee shop. He also did not have a home office and made a conscious decision not to work from home.

Starbucks wouldn't be the ideal place for me, but the Idea I like. If you have a lot of distractions at home and you don't deal with your environment with disciplinary measures Measures If you want to put this to the test, I recommend renting day offices.

There is an advantage in paying money for your office

This has another advantage, because if you do it every time Money Paying to go to your office will make your day very productive - if it's your own money. If the Executive pays, he will make sure that you are as productive as possible that day.

Conclusion: Home office: yes, if you have maximum self-discipline and you in advance klare Regulate agree with your environment. Otherwise, get out there, find a different work environment and you will be more successful, one way or the other.

With this in mind, I wish you the best of luck and “Fat Booty”

PS: Yes there is, the exception: I also have a home office once or twice a month, whenever I write texts. Texts, such as for the newsletter that you have just read or, for example, for books or audio books, for specialist articles and of course when a new seminar concept or lecture concept is developed.

This also happens at my home at the kitchen table. In the office I would never have the calm and concentration for this, which is partly due to the fact that I don't have one of my own Workplace have in the office. What for? I'm there a maximum of one day a week, it would be a waste of space and resources.

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