The Work from Home Challenge

Working from home has been a part of my professional life for over a decade now. Most of the time, I call a customer site, an airport, or a hotel my office. COVID changed that a bit and allowed for more remote customer meetings than in-person. The great part of that is that when work is done I can immediately transition to family time.

At certain times (like snow days!), it is hard to explain to a 5 year old why we can't just play all day. It's even hard to convince my adult self! But it's times like the one captured in this picture that put the biggest smile on my face. I took a break the other day and when I returned to my office my oldest had setup shop there. He told me, he had a work call and some meetings to do. I graciously seceded the desk and did work from my chair.?

One of the things I really enjoy about this new remote workforce is that from time to time you get to take a glimpse into people's lives. Specifically, when their dog, child, spouse, friend, etc., wanders into their workspace. Some people get upset with those moments, but they are in fact some of my favorites. It reminds us that we are all humans and that we have lives outside of work.

I hope that everyone takes a moment the next time some little person, dog, or whatever pops into a video conference to say hello and remember that everyone is doing the best they can to balance both work and life. It's hard and we all deserve a little pat on the back for doing the best we can.