why you should never feel guilty about working from home

Another intense storm is set to cripple Atlanta this week. Quick status update: No current sign of snow outside my apartment though it was drizzling earlier and it looks to be damp on the ground outside and on my bike I store on my balcony…

But still I am working remotely today and I plan to tomorrow as well, Thursday is up in the air. Sound absurd? To anyone reading from the northeast, midwest, west coast (Rockies area, not Cali) sure I’m sure this is insane; truthfully to me it is as well. I won’t explain or justify the reasons why Atlanta is simply not equipped to handle this sort of weather (okay correction, I could explain it, it would be challenging to justify it) but instead will focus on the reasons why no one should feel guilty working remotely if you have the flexibility to and the proper approval to.

Bottom line: If you are lucky enough to have the flexibility to work remotely and there’s something in your life warranting it do it. End of story.

Okay maybe some people need more to rationalize this. In fact I sensed from a few of my coworkers yesterday that there was some hesitation by folks to work from home. 

I told one of the writers on my team that within the situation of crazy Atlanta (read: bad drivers and bad conditions due to insufficient materials to battle the weather, all on top of already horrible traffic) it seemed selfish to me to actually add volume to the roads. He looked at me strangely. I explained that there were many people who had to go into their jobs and didn’t have the luxury like us to work remotely. We were really just adding to the risk that they would be endangered and endangering ourselves. 

Again, I know midwestern, northern, and western friends: LOL. It’s true, I agree. But seriously, why risk it?

This doesn’t just apply to Atlanta and weather. I think it’s common to get a little nervous about working from home. We live in a society and tend to work for businesses that are largely structured so when presented with the opportunity to manage ourselves it can feel a bit strange if nothing else. 

Of course don’t abuse it. But at the end of the day if your company grants you this perk and you are self-motivated enough (or can devise tricks to motivate yourself) then you are simply silly if you’re not taking advantage.

f course don’t abuse it. 

As for me, I’ve been working from my apartment since 8am and need to run and see if there’s any milk left in the grocery story (really should have gone on Sunday…) and since I have the flexibility to work remotely and manage myself, I am off to do this then wrap up the rest of the work I need to tackle this afternoon.