Challenges of Working from Home You Should Know

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As an addition to my post about the benefits of remote work, today we'll discuss the challenges of working from home we encounter that we need to tackle and resolve.

In this article, I'm going to share the shortcomings, or in other words, what to expect and what should be evaluated and considered before starting this type of job.

Challenges of Working from Home You Need to Know

1. The Proper Mindset About the Challenges of Working from Home
2. Lack of Social Benefits
3. Low Payment
4. Social Life?
5. Time Management
6. Finding a Job
7. Funny Little-Known Challenges of Working from Home
8. It's harder to impress your manager online
9. You won't hear your colleagues laugh at your jokes
10. Your partner will do anything to sabotage your work
11. You will get bored from staying at home
12. You will struggle with distractions
13. Conclusion

The Proper Mindset About the Challenges of Working from Home

A winner is a dreamer who never gives up.

~ Nelson Mandela 

In the beginning, I want to start with something straightforward. To be successful and enjoy the flexibility of a home-based job, you'll need the "I WANT to work from home!" attitude, and not the "I'm not so sure anymore" one, whenever you face the challenges of working from home.

Indeed, there will be unpleasant things, as you will find out for yourself later on, but if you are not ready to take that challenge – it's better to stay safe and in the comfort of your current job.

1. Lack of Social Benefits

Social benefits are one of the foremost challenges of working from home. The reason is because they are directly related to the job's finances.

No insurance, no taxes are paid for you by the employer, no free sports activities, no team buildings, not even a grasp of those.

Because you work from home, most employers choose to offer individual contracts. Such an agreement excludes the benefits a regular labor contract provides.

This is one of the differences between both types of settlements. And because the employer doesn't do that, guess what? You have to do it yourself.

I do pay my own taxes, I do pay my own health insurance and everything. This, of course, depends on the country, but as far as I know, the situation in most countries is very similar about taxes.

2. Low Payment

Your salary will differ depending on the job and your agreement with the work provider. The sad reality is that in many countries (including mine), flexible jobs are still paid less than regular ones.

The job opportunities available to me usually have low payments and require a certain level of attention to detail. This is another one of the challenges of working from home that I need to deal with every day.

In general, the most common way of payment which I've seen so far is pay per job or task. That means you get paid a certain sum for a given task, regardless of the time required for completion.

If you are unlucky enough, you can get daunting tasks all day long. They will consume lots of your time, and in the end, you will be left with almost nothing earned.

That's where the positive mindset should come in: if you're determined to start a work-from-home job, nothing can stop you.

If you think about this model of work–salary, though, it's completely logical. You can't really expect payment per hour or per day when there is nobody to monitor how you spend your time.

A few exceptions exist: different companies offer different opportunities to attract workers. But in general, the pay-per-piece option works best for employers.

This way, they can calculate their budget more accurately. I was absolutely sure about myself and my feelings when I started, and I'm happy about my choice.

Having a flexible job is a dream come true for me, and it's the best thing that has ever happened to me, purely professionally.

3. Social Life?

Yes, you got that flexible job, and everything seems just great. Awesome job, lucrative salary, no problems at all. Here come your friends.

All of them will learn that you have a flexible schedule, and their first thought will be that you can be available anytime they like.

It's nearly impossible to explain to a person at a regular office job what it's like to have a flexible job. And the last thing it means is that you are available anytime.

I've experienced minor issues with that. For example, my friends are not working during the weekend, and of course, they assume I'll have time to spend with them.

However, I already made my break on another day, and I feel like working on the weekend. After all, why would I have a flexible job if I can't enjoy it and use it to the fullest?

Yes, I can have a break at the weekend, but I don't have to, do I? It can be challenging to adjust your working hours with those of all your friends.

4. Time Management

I already mentioned that, but it all comes to efficiency at the end of the day. Or to calculate how much work you managed to fulfill for a certain period.

The more efficient you are, the better payment you can expect. Sometimes it's difficult to take the role of your boss and make yourself work a certain amount of time. It is about what kind of boss you are. 

Are you too strict or too loose with yourself? The best time management is when you have decided on the results you want to achieve (the quantity of work).

Then no matter what schedule or timing you choose for yourself and regardless of the speed, you can complete this quantity by the time you set.

Setting a goal is always a good idea because otherwise, you risk getting less salary than expected. And that will leave you disappointed and discouraged.

5. Finding a Job

All my friends get excited when I tell them I don't go to an office and make my own schedule. And this always makes me smile.

Truthfully, making a full-time income from home at the current working opportunities provided online takes lots of determination, patience, a positive mindset, and, most importantly – compromising.

Not that you can't find jobs – but you can't always find jobs that can give you enough to cover your expenses.

It also depends on whether you want to work in your native language or English. For jobs in English, your level would need to be relatively high.

Fluent is always best. But, if foreign languages are something other than what you are interested in, then you would have to agree to whatever is on offer in your own country - which limits your opportunities.

If we remove from the remaining the ones you need to be qualified for, you might be left with just a few.

In case you are located in the United States, for example, and your native language is English, this would ensure a much better picture as this field is thriving in this big country.

In any case, if you are left with a few options for a remote job, my advice is to be determined and motivated when you apply so that you can get approved.

Funny Little-Known Challenges of Working from Home

1. It's harder to impress your manager online

Virtual communication lacks facial expressions, and tone of voice, along with many other essential parts of a quality conversation.

This can lead to limited opportunities for growth, and it might be challenging for you to prove yourself as a professional.

2. You won't hear your colleagues laugh at your jokes

You can only see the emojis or read their text messages in the team chat.

This situation is from those challenges of working from home that make us think: "Are remote jobs really worth the hype?"

Then you remind yourself that you can still go out and laugh with others. They don't have to be your teammates, though.

3. Your partner will do anything to sabotage your work

And he will do it just to get that extra attention. The same goes for your child.

The fact that you are working is secondary. What's important to them is that you are home, and "available", or at least they believe so.

Unless you become truly furious, they will overstep your boundaries over and over again. Remote jobs are relatively new - and your family members won't know how to behave unless you teach them.

4. You will get bored from staying at home

The same room, the same furniture, no variety. You can always go outside and work from there, but that goes with some extra preparation.

At some point, you might want to change the environment. Whenever you feel like it, you can go out for a walk, a hike, or even a short staycation.

5. You will struggle with distractions

Inevitably, you are going to have to deal with your concentration levels.

You will start hearing and becoming irritated at noises like construction work outside, neighbors talking downstairs, and your partner doing the chores.

You will fight with yourself whether your attention goes to this super unpleasant sound or to the tasks that require your full attention.

You know what you need to focus on, but it's a process to train your mind to do it, and ignore everything else around.

Conclusion

Remote jobs are certainly only for some of us. It's similar to regular office jobs – sometimes it can take years to find exactly what you're looking for, and the company should also want to hire you.

And then you must accept all the job's disadvantages. In my opinion, most people would prefer office jobs. Even if they have downsides, people are too used to this kind of work.

That will summarize what I can tell you about the challenges of working from home. The truth is that the only right mindset for working from home is to never give up.

Thanks for reading! See you later!