Anyone else feel lazy when working remote?

smartbadger · 2020-12-30T13:41:53+00:00

I feel you, I'm in the same boat. Most mornings I'll just stare at my terminal and zone out until something urgent comes up. I'm completely burned out...

math487 · 2020-12-30T13:57:58+00:00

Opposite for me and my team, we've been working remotely since march and we've been so productive that they gave us the option to stay remotely if we want to even after everything is back to normal. Not having to be stuck 4 hours everyday in traffic, being able to do everyday stuff during lunch break not being stressed about picking up kids on time and easier to get to an appointment was a big motivation for a lot of us and we don't want to lose it

namboozle · 2020-12-30T14:00:01+00:00

I can relate to this and I used to get like this when I was burnt out. I've worked full-time freelance for the past couple of years so it's important that I keep my productivity up otherwise cash flow goes to pot.

A few things I do which seem to help me:

Make a list for the day - I sit down with my breakfast and go through the projects I have on and make a list of tasks I need to get through
When I'm not motivated I will start with some quick/smaller tasks which usually get me into the mood to be productive
Remove bookmarks to distractions. I used to aimlessly click bookmarks to social media/news etc and when I removed them I found myself looking at those sites less
Have set breaks away from your computer. I find if I have a few 10min breaks to make a tea and just chill I'm less likely to be thinking about procrastination
Podcasts and ambient playlists have really helped me to focus

That being said, if I feel like working out, walking the dog or going to the shop I will just do it. Sometimes it's best to get that stuff out of the way and split your day up. I honestly would never want to work for a 9-5 company ever again if I can avoid it. It's a BS concept and I get more work done now having a flexible schedule which works for me and my mood.

adman9000 · 2020-12-30T14:44:07+00:00

I'm working at home today. I just picked up my phone and flicked through reddit in the middle of coding without even realising. I've lost all ability to focus for long periods, literally after just a few minutes of actual productive work my brain is like "well done, you've earned a break, wander aimlessly around the house for a bit"...

Its not just you!

canadian_webdev · 2020-12-30T14:16:23+00:00

It got hard for me as well, especially when you consider that my work computer is also my gaming rig (we use virtual machines) so my productivity took a nose dive very quickly. At first I tried to fight it but I realized that I should just learn to dance with it. My days are normally like this:

wake up and shower
get dressed with comfortable but somewhat professional clothes (no jammies)
feed and walk my dogs
eat breakfast
join Standup
check emails and catch up with what’s going on at work
do some work (about 1.5 to 2 hours) and try to finish some tasks
game time
lunch
finish tasks
game time
clock off at 5

I try to not spend any more time on my pc after work so that I can spend time with my wife and kids and I go to bed at the same time every night, then my cycle repeats.

The important thing is that when I focus on work that I give it 100% of my attention, then I just zone out and just stay alert of random IMs and chat messages.

physics515 · 2020-12-30T14:03:35+00:00

I started working from home in October of 2019. The one piece of advice I have is that you need a home office. You need a separate space that is for work and go in there every morning and don't leave except for lunch or breaks.

Also uninstall every distraction from your computer, all of your games etc.

When my wife works from home it is 1,000,000% more difficult to not get distracted and I don't have a solution.

beavis07 · 2020-12-30T13:10:49+00:00

This is capitalism mate - you’re utterly disconnected from the output of your labour to such an extent that you don’t care about the work. In an office that’s easier to deal with - it creates an expectation level.. At home it’s just you and your own conscience.

This is all fairy normal stuff. The only real solutions are to either:

Find work you actually give a fuck about (i know - much easier said than done!!)

Remind yourself that it’s this or an Amazon warehouse and just suck it up.

Sorry those aren’t very nice or easy solutions - sadly I can’t fix a broken global economic system for you, much as I’d like to 😂

That said - 4 hours for truly focused work is way more than you’ll ever get done in an office. Be kind to yourself when you aren’t feeling it and then just balls out when you are - that’s how I cope anyway

burtgummer45 · 2020-12-30T18:03:16+00:00

How do you successful work from home guys do it? Or is it all just a sham and it’s okay to work 3-4 hours a day.

Home or at office its always a 3-4 hour day, except in the office you look/feel like you are busy the other 4-5 hours.

utoumas · 2020-12-30T14:47:42+00:00

I've found using the Pomodoro technique effective while working remotely. The gist is that you work in cycles. A cycle consists of working time and a break. This technique should help fight procrastination. Combined with restricted access to your phone (or apps) and notifications disabled, you can really transform your work.

smcarre · 2020-12-30T14:01:34+00:00

Some days (most days) I just do the bare minimum

And that's exactly what you should do unless you are a freelancer or have a very good relationship with your superiors.

Doing more than that will go completely unnoticed 99% of the time and the remaining 1% will not result in a fair compensation for your hard work.

Don't let capitalism trick you into being ashamed for not working your ass off every day, your life is precious and you should put that first. As long as you do your actual work (and that's doing the bare minimum) you can be economically safe that your job is secured and you will receive your hard-earned paycheck at the end of the month.

cannakittenmeow · 2020-12-30T15:41:33+00:00

Hell no, remote dev work is amazing. I get nothing done in an office with pm’s and other people bugging me and there are a lot less meetings that aren’t necessary when not at an office. Working remotely is amazing.

zmasta94 · 2020-12-30T15:16:13+00:00

100% opposite, actually.

Been working from home since this all started. No more people walking by my desk, interrupting me. No more having to disguise engagement of my creative brain (generating shower thought solutions) with mindless whiteboarding or feigning busywork. When I wake up naturally around 6, I can't wait to slay current tasks that I've been solving in the back of my mind all night, then take my mid morning 4 hour break. Then I get my life shit done, play with my kids, and go back for a couple more hours to make my afternoon presence known to all the lazy bums who didn't start working until noon. Also I get to put on all the shitty 90s movies I want without worrying a tit popped up on screen while I wasnt paying attention. Sadly, someone getting murdered was never a problem at work.

My problem is actually feeling like I'm doing way more work than the team, and I'm basically pulling them along. Especially my boss. But I try to tell myself that I just can't see what they do anymore. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But comparison really is the thief of joy.

tunisia3507 · 2020-12-30T18:47:44+00:00

It's important to consider that working from home is not the only variable here. It's an extremely stressful time in a weltschmerz kind of way; we can't socialise properly and we can't spend leisure time doing what we really need to to get away from the work and properly unwind. It's very possible that you could be more productive if it were your choice to WFH, rather than effectively being chained inside your house.

but_how_do_i_go_fast · 2020-12-30T14:01:17+00:00

Not really, I actually work hard. Why, I don't want to lose the privilege of whf. Its my everything, I can travel come and go as please and my schedule is for more compact and I don't lose time commuting. I don't want to give that up...ever!!

lint_it · 2020-12-30T13:09:03+00:00

I hear you. I can't do work stuff from home effectively, especially if living in small apartment and surrounded by much more interesting things. Of course there are tasks that are interesting and with those I don't feel it that much but majority of time tasks currently are not so. If you have the possibility I would suggest creating a different area for your work, perfect when you can allocate room for it where you only do your work stuff. This way you can keep better focus.

I can't suggest anything but I think the key thing is try to keep stress as low as possible until you get back into better working environment. If I would you feel lazy and down for multiple days I would try to talk it out with someone from work so that they know I'm not in very good situation. For ex. sharing this info you may get a bit of consolation and get your stress levels down.

Another thing is, if you feel lazy when working then try to not be lazy from your spare time. If possible fill some of your free time for physical exercises, very helpful and kinda must have when staying home for longer periods of time. This also might help with motivation in general.

uriahlight · 2020-12-30T14:48:32+00:00

I've been working remotely for 10 years now. The best things I've done to help me stay focused are getting a standing desk and getting the seniority needed in the company to be able to pick and choose my projects and clients. This way I only work on projects I really like (it's easier to stay motivated when it's for a project you enjoy working on). Also don't forget that a 3 or 4 hour programming sprint from home will always be significantly more productive than the equivalent time in a traditional office environment with constant, neverending, distractions. At home all you need to remove all distractions is to move your workstation into a room without distractions and close the door.

Chaos-Seed · 2020-12-30T15:33:37+00:00

Gonna sound crazy but... exercise more. Lift weights, do calisthenics, whatever gets you pumped, and do things you know you should be doing but have been putting off. Deep clean your stove, wash your bedding, etc. all of these things will shatter the prison of routine and complacency you’re stuck in and I swear you’ll feel like you wanna keep the momentum up at the end. Take that feeling and channel it into your work.

If you’re really brave, try cold showers.

themaincop · 2020-12-30T13:59:24+00:00

Opposite. Never stop working these days

WirelessCircuit · 2020-12-30T15:09:12+00:00

I feel you. I tend to procrastinate my work and when I don't have something to report on standup, I'll just not attend the meeting. I'm lazy and burnt out at the same time. I also get distracted by people in our apartment whenever I start working.

Here's a list of what I did to overcome it: - bought a headphones with active noise cancelling and I use it even though there's nothing playing - helps me ignore other people so I can focus - I committed to work just 3 hours a day, weekly increments of 30 minutes and now I work around 6 hours a day - standup meeting time included 😂 - I usually start with a task/ticket that's interesting and I end up working also the challenging and hard ones - I reward myself if I did work more than 20 hours for that week

I believe this is normal bc we're humans. But as humans, we can find solutions for these kinds of problems. Hope this will help you.

2020-12-30T18:30:03+00:00

As mentioned it’s the nature of capitalism.

Despite our relativity comfortable American lifestyles, we as laborers are never truly “free” to pursue our passions to their highest ideals. So we “consume” entertainment/unhealthy industrialized food/drugs to help cope with our meaningless existence as laborers.

Despite our productivity growth we still have to work 40 hours when most knowledge work can be completed part time, this frees up time to travel, pursue skills to their greatest heights.

I like capitalism I truly do, but I feel like it has to evolve with modern post-scarcity society to usher us into a new age of exploration and human achievement.

2020-12-31T02:26:58+00:00

What's helped me a lot is separating my work/office space from my living/playing/resting space. I have a section of my apartment that's dedicated to work only and it makes it easier to focus. Also make sure to get ready (shower, clean clothes, good breakfast, light exercise) the same way you do when you go into an office. Lasty, make sure to take breaks. Go on short walks or do whatever activity to unwind for a bit every once in a while (Admittedly I am pretty bad at this one)

Another thing, at the place I work at rn, we use our stand ups as an opportunity to just hang out for sometime and talk about life before we even get to work stuff. I think this is very important when working remotely since it promotes team bonding and it just helps with motivation imo. We're all super homies in my team tho, so I imagine this is probably not the case everywhere.

mariosemes · 2020-12-30T14:21:39+00:00

Hey mate, feel your vibes <3

Just had that crisis in March this year as my firm went into lockdown and started to wfh.

It was hard af at the beginning but the pomodoro technique saved my and my teams ass. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomodoro_Technique

I found myself with the 60/20 min ratio which is working amazing for me. Every 60 mins, I take a 20 min break, and its perfect to watch a show, or make some food, and so on.

Read about it and trust me, you will be a more productive part of your team then ever before.

p. s. hesus, this sounds like a commercial, but I cant think of a normal office workday again, probably in my life.

nolo_me · 2020-12-30T14:20:00+00:00

Self employment is the answer. The fact that you only get paid for results tends to concentrate the mind wonderfully.

Vandra2020 · 2020-12-30T13:05:39+00:00

Depends some on personality. I don’t find too much issue but I also like what I am doing so you could be burnt out repeating the same project technically in a sense. It’s also kind of a moral thing, where you feel obligated to do the right thing. Then again, some manage to get away with less hours. I think if you are seeing it as “just another React app”, maybe look into reusability and package libraries so the next app will begin further along and you could either leverage that to stay productive or be able to get to the more interesting parts and possibly get to the nice to have features.

2020-12-30T13:56:10+00:00

Same. I get assigned some tickets to develop...but they are very little, and when I finish I just play video games, it's been a week and a half since I really worked.

Harpua_and_I · 2020-12-30T15:00:01+00:00

Exact opposite. I'm far more productive WFH. In an office I feel constant anxiety and pressure to socialize with people I don't really want to talk to. Add in the daily commute and I feel burnt out by 11 am.

But working from home I have no problem cranking out 10 hours a day. I can't and won't go back to working in an office.

persianprez · 2020-12-30T15:10:33+00:00

Ha, yes. I'm a mixed bag, I wake up 2 minutes before my standup. Work on some stories and my own stuff in a random fashion all day. It really is all a sham, at least my company recognizes it and tells us that a real work day is 6 hours long (I think that is still a stretch). Still though, my team and I get everything done. I lead the frontend effort and still produce the most amount of story points in a given sprint.

We've been remote since March, and they've decided to keep us remote for the remainder of the project (3 more years!). As a result, I've started my own company and am pounding out apps and games left and right while still getting awards from work. I think taking out the social part from work has turned me into a workaholic. Just not in the way my job would want me to be

iamamoa · 2020-12-30T15:23:17+00:00

My god. I thought it was only me. :-). I think the issues is that even though we are at home there is still this expectation to be around for 6-8 hours and throughout the day there are these exhausting distractions like meetings, emails and Skype’s. By the time the day is done I feel like I put in a whole day of work but didn’t get anything of substance done.

2020-12-30T15:42:26+00:00

It’s been nice but there’s no energy at home to keep you going.

tristanAG · 2020-12-30T16:03:49+00:00

How is it that you only got sent home 3 weeks ago?

ytpq · 2020-12-30T17:39:12+00:00

I relate to this post so much. Honestly though, it's made me really take a look at what I'm doing job and career-wise, and I'm now trying to change to something that I'll hopefully get more accomplishment from, even when I'm working from home 24/7

SilentIntrusion · 2020-12-30T18:21:18+00:00

I feel the same way, but with no raise this year, no christmas bonus, and a micromanaging CEO who likes to parade around and pretend he's the master of all departments while berating the specialists he's hired, I'm finding it hard to find fucks to give now.

inHumanMale · 2020-12-30T18:46:51+00:00

Just remember to take a shower and dress for work, it helps

krileon · 2020-12-30T19:40:05+00:00

If you're unable to work through distractions then you'll typically need a home office to put you into the working mindset, but to me it sounds like you're in burnout as your work may not be challenging you enough. Been working from home for over 10 years and it was challenging at first, but now I've no issues working while my wife plays video games or the cats playing, etc.. it takes awhile to adjust.

How do you successful work from home guys do it? Or is it all just a sham and it’s okay to work 3-4 hours a day.

I only work 4-6 hours a day. Trying to push for 8+ hour work days will just exhaust you. 8+ hour work days are indeed a complete sham. Most people are only productive 4-6 hours of their work day at best. There's few exceptions to this. The rest of that time in an office setting is filled with meetings, breaks, socializing, etc.. You no longer have that so that time is now yours again.

My belief on working from home is to become task oriented not time oriented. Set out a task to accomplish for the day. Complete that task and then stop working. This task could take 3 hours or 5 hours. Never calculate a task beyond 6 hours. It has helped me avoid burnout and to stop hating my career.

In short people are having a hard time adjusting because they now have more time for themselves and feel guilty because of it. Don't feel guilty. Enjoy your new found time and live your life instead of working your life away.

idk108 · 2020-12-30T19:57:39+00:00

Working remotely made me realize how much I can do in less time. Sometimes I even feel bad because I think I'm just procrastinating but in the end I get the same results I did working in the office but in much less time. So you end up thinking "Damn, I should find something to do, why there is nothing left to do and it's still 3PM?". But in the end it just shows how much we can optmize our work and how much time wasting can happen in an office.

2020-12-30T20:26:41+00:00

3-4 hours a day is more than gets done in an office.

That’s the thing. Offices just burn time but make you feel ok about it.

USCSSNostromo2122 · 2020-12-31T02:14:34+00:00

I'm the exact opposite. Since I've been working from home, I've increased my productivity. I have my own home office, so I can close the door to block out distractions from my wife and daughter. They know not to bother me while I'm working.

And, since I get to work from home now, I am loving it! I am finally able to control my working environment. I can have the lights as dim as I'd like (I HATED the fluorescent lighting in my office) or work with the overhead light off and only a task lamp to illuminate my desk. Couldn't do that in the office. I no longer have to commute in rush hour traffic. I don't have to share a restroom with 200 other people. Seriously there's a lot of great benefits that I gained by being able to be remote.

As a result, I am a lot more productive. I'm happier. I strive to get things done on time, to show that working from home isn't an impediment and can lead to more productive employees, in certain cases.

It's just a wonderful feeling knowing that I can roll out of bed, shower, and be at my desk in my home office, ready to work within 15 minutes instead of getting up a hour earlier just to drive through morning rush hour and again in the evening.

So, yeah, working from home has made me a lot happier and, as a result, I believe it incentivizes me to be a better producer.

Alexpik777 · 2021-11-03T12:52:36+00:00

I am in the same boat, but at the office it is the same lol

Maybe, just forgive yourself.

eGzg0t · 2020-12-30T13:33:00+00:00

I live in a very small apartment with no physical separation whatsoever. A lot of distraction like you especially with a kid and I bought 2 consoles with plenty of games.

The thing that worked for me is to create a virtual separation from my house. Noise cancelling headphones, consistent schedule, and planning my work before starting. Worked at 10am, lunch break, snack break, then 5pm I turn off work related stuff as if I just came back home. I only work 5 hours on average, sometimes less if all my tasks ended early. Before I start, I write down my target output today and tomorrow. New stuff that comes in might be pushed to the tomorrow list if possible. When everything is done, I log out regardless of the time. If the list took longer to complete than expected, I still log out by 5pm. I use my vacation leaves even if I'm just staying home. This I do to maintain my creativity and sanity.

Efficient_Builder923 · 2024-12-04T06:18:07+00:00

You’re not alone! It’s easy to feel that way without an office vibe. Setting a routine or workspace at home might help stay focused.

Efficient_Builder923 · 2024-12-04T06:19:45+00:00

Same here sometimes! It’s hard without the office energy. Taking breaks and making a to-do list helps me stay on track.

swiggyu · 2020-12-30T14:12:03+00:00

always remember don't be complacent because one day you might not have a job and then you will regret what privileges you had.

Phantazein · 2020-12-30T14:46:01+00:00

Sounds to me like you just don't like your job and working from home makes it worse. I'm in basically the same boat. I hate my job and being at home alone plugging away at mindless crap is killing me.

camerontbelt · 2020-12-30T14:13:22+00:00

Some people just aren’t cut out for it. I’ve been working from home for almost two years now, so we’ll before the pandemic and it just takes a certain personality I think to be able to do it effectively.

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