Keith Wagner

Two Years of Remote Work

A little over two years ago, the world came to a screeching halt because of COVID-19. Myself, like many others started working from home to help curb the spread of the virus. While some have started to go back to the office on at least a hybrid basis, I am now 100% remote and loving it.

My work desk setup in my basement

For the first 9 months, I was working at my old job and we just closed the office to keep everyone safe, but then in December 2020 I changed jobs to a position where I am fully remote with no expectation to go into the office. This is where I'm at now and I don't think I'd ever want to go back into the office again.

At home, I feel more comfortable and generally more productive. It's a lot easier for me to get into a flow when I'm working on a task. I feel like there are less distractions and I can just put my head down and code. I have to be cognizant of not letting my Microsoft Teams notifications distract me too much, but other than that, I can still get my work done in a timely manner.

I don't need to get into all the benefits as I'm sure many already know what they are. Lack of a commute as well as wear and tear on my car, ability to intermittently take care of small tasks like laundry, easier to exercise over lunch, the list goes on. I enjoy them all while still being productive. I wish more companies and managers could respect that.

I would find it hard for myself to return to an office. If I have my way, I'll only work remotely from here on out.