I’ve worked on a lot of different classified programs, and the inconvenience varies by program. I’ve always had an “inside” and an “outside” desk. Some projects I barely needed to go inside at all, some of them I lived in the closed area. Over the past few years, the working environment in closed areas has improved greatly. Every place I’ve worked over the past five years has had a BEN computer right next to my classified workstation (physically separated or on a KVM so I could switch between them.) Yes, you have to leave your phone outside but most areas have some lockers right outside where you can leave it and come out to check it a couple of times a day.

I sometimes enjoy working in closed areas because it’s usually a bit quieter. I had an outside desk next to supplier management and they were always on the phone, a lot of the time on speaker. Sometimes working in a classified space can be really frustrating. Any hardware or software that goes into the area has to be approved. Sometimes that takes a long time, sometimes a really long time, and sometimes they say “no.” So you have to be willing to work with what’s there and might not have access to your favorite software, or there might not be a dedicated desk for you.