Yes, You Can Do That During the Work Day

Take advantage of remote work’s greatest — and most overlooked — benefit

Laura Vanderkam
Forge

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Illustration of a calendar with times blocked off with colorful images of actions/activities.
Illustration: Dora Godfrey/ Medium

It’s no wonder polling shows that nearly half of U.S. workers want to keep working from home even after restrictions lift: There’s so much more flexibility. Without a commute, hours are less set. Without an office, everyone is less subject to the group norms that have night owls trying to look alert at 8 a.m., and that makes people self-conscious about leaving the building for any reason.

Still, many people feel reticent about using this freedom. Anecdotes abound of people sitting hunched at their computers without ceasing, not so much as leaving the house for days at a time. In one survey of people working from home, two-thirds said they were more likely to work nights and weekends than they were prior to working remotely.

But fair is fair. It’s likely your workplace is benefiting from you working remotely. Why shouldn’t you get something out of it, too? Here’s how you can start using during-the-day flexibility to improve your life…

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