For better or for worse: We asked 12 women about their WFH experience in 2021

If there is one thing for which many of us would like to thank Covid-19, it would be that we all got the opportunity to work from home. It’s a bane for few,and a boon for others. Covid-19 has altered our lives – be it in terms of health, finances, personal life or professional obligations. The major change that happened was a culture of work from home (WFH) norms due to social distancing restrictions. While there are a number of advantages of a work from home set up – ranging from spending quality time with your loved ones to next to nil time spent travelling – it also has some adverse effects.

So, HealthShots asked 12 Indian women about their experiences with work from home, and it’s a mixed bag of emotions!

Pros and cons of work from home amid Covid-19 pandemic

1. Shifa Khan, 30

Well, work from home increased my productivity at work for sure. It is also budget and time friendly since I don’t commute to work often. Working from office had its own set of distractions that affect your capacity to work. If I talk about the drawbacks of WFH, the work hours are bound to exceed since employees are considered ‘in comfort’ of their homes. This eventually, leads to burnout.

2. Geetika Sachdev, 31

It has been a mixed bag! Some days have been super fun and productive, while on others, I miss a lack of structure. Plus, work from home has blurred boundaries between work and life.

3. Khyati Sanger, 22

I really enjoy working from home because of several reasons. But I think most importantly, I live quite a distance from my office. Working from home ensures I don’t have to wake up too early to reach the location. I get my rest. Being well-rested also translates into better work and better mood. The comfort of my home has truly ensured that I’m able to tackle my new job well.

4. Divya, 22

There is a saying that we should never mix personal and professional life. But with work from home, nothing remained personal! Extra hours, no casual breaks in between and halt to social interaction in person, just made it a monotonous work life within a room. Ugggghhh, please end this soon!

5. Aishwarya Vaidya, 28

Work from home is actually a boon for me. Being a fitness enthusiast, I am able to strike a good work-life balance. I get to concentrate on my health, exercise every day without fail, and hit the sack on time. Moreover, work from home is a good move to safeguard against the virus. In my opinion, the WFH option should continue for at least a few months. As there is zero commuting time, I have been able to increase my productivity at work.

6. Chandrayee, 25

Work from home is a very sustainable solution for every woman out there. Yes, I agree that there are certain challenges too – sometimes the internet is not stable, sometimes people have to manage their kids as well as office/client meetings together simultaneously. But while doing work from home, I have been able to spend more time with my family, I have been able to work more comfortably, it’s a wonderful facility because it saves both time and money. Moreover, it has been observed that people end up working more, and people have become more productive while working from home. I love working from home. It’s so much comfortable, managing household chores and work together is so much easily manageable.

7. Shreya Gupta, 22

I feel WFH has its own advantages and disadvantages. I joined a new company and felt that if it would’ve been an in-office experience I would’ve learnt more. However, looking at the current Covid-19 situation, I feel more comfortable working from home (my back and shoulders would like to disagree on this).

8. Nirupama Shaw, 26

I’m able to spend more time with my family and save lots of time and money too! I’m able to use the travelling time to focus more on my health and fitness. But there’s a downside – there’s zero social life. However, an introvert like me won’t mind having no interaction!

9. Yashwani, 22

My experience working from home has been a blissful, but also a bit lazy as it consumes a lot of time to finish tasks in a home environment. It is blissful because you can multitask your home-related work and office-related work simultaneously. However, work from home certainly has some demerits as it hinders physical activity in a day.

10. Muskan, 23

Work from home has been very flexible for me and I do all my work comfortably. But sometimes it increases my working hours and I’m working more than my scheduled time.

11. Maryam, 27

In 2019, when we started working from home, it felt like a Godsent blessing because it was an escape from the daily rush hours, getting up an hour late because we didn’t have to dress up and we also thought no one is really watching us, if we are actually working. However, in the past two years we’ve missed all that. I especially miss travelling to work, that was my time to listen to some music and get refreshed but now with ill-defined working hours, there’s no time for refreshment. There is no time for self. It’s either work or ‘home-work’ or both, which is very stressful. The work-life balance, which was earlier blurred has completely been washed away now. The sad thing is, single women at work are perceived to have nothing else to worry about, so they are expected to give all their time to work, which is overwhelming.

12. Subhra Parna Deb, 22

Work from home has been nice because I get to enjoy the comfort of my home. I don’t have to get up early and rush to the office. On the other hand, after a few months, it has become really monotonous and boring. After all, I don’t have my colleagues here to break the monotony, to have a little laugh occasionally and chit-chat.