When I logged into Facebook recently I saw the following on my news feed:

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It’s hard to believe I’ve spend 4 years working remotely and I thought would take the time to look back at what’s worked and what’s been difficult.

What’s Awesome

Less Time Spent in the Car/Away from My Family

For me this is the best feature of working from home. When I worked in an office I would spend at least 10 minutes going to and from work every day (one of my criteria for apartment selection was proximity to my apartment).

261 work days/year * (10 minutes to work + 10 minutes home) = 5220 minutes
5220 minutes / 60 minutes in an hour = 87 hours

87 hours, I save 87 hours of my life every year by not driving to work.

The average communte in America is 25.4 minutes so let’s look at those numbers:

261 work days/year * (25.4 minutes to work + 25.4 minutes home) = 13258.8 minutes
13258.8 minutes / 60 minutes in an hour = 331.47 hours

331.47 hours! That’s a lot of wasted time.

Because I’m not driving to work every day I get to spend that time being with my family and working on myself which is a huge gain.

Better Working Environment

I have total control over my work environment. Total Control. I got to pick the color of the paint in my office, I got to pick to lights, and I have a nice window that I can open when the weather is good.

The downside to this is that I also have to pay for my work space but I could be working in a chair in the living room (I have done that), a coffee shop (done this), and even in the waiting room at the doctors (doing that right now). :-)

Less Gas/Car Costs

Again, let’s look at some numbers. My commute was 3.3 miles every day (according to Google maps) so and my car gets really good gas mileage:

261 work days/year * 6.6 miles/day / 29 mpg = 59.4 gallons of gas every year

Gas is at an all time low right now of ~2/Gallon but it has been more than $4/gallon:

59.4 gallons * $2/gallon = $118.80/year 59.4 gallons * $4/gallon = $237.60/year

So I’ve save somewhere between $118 and $237 every year.

I haven’t been able to find a number for the average distance people travel to/from work every day but based on the fact the average commute is 2.5 times longer than mine I would wager it’s also at least 2.5 times more costly.

This number also doesn’t take in all the routine maintenance and replacements I’ve had over the years.

The biggest win for me as well is that because my wife is also able to stay at home we’re able to drop down to a single car which saves us over $300 a month in car payments and insurance. That’s a huge win.

Better Time Management

One of the great parts about working from home is how I can better utilize my time. I’m a quick eater, so generally my lunches take much less than my allocated hour which allows me to do laundry or dishes or play a video game (I learned I can eat during the loading screens and still enjoy myself). This has been compounded by the fact I don’t need to do all that “get ready” for work stuff like pack a lunch and scrap snow off my car.

Less Money Spent on Work Clothes/Food

Most of the time I worked in an office I would pack a lunch but, if I’m being totally honest, I’m guessing I ate out at LEAST twice a week. Working at home removes some of the temptation to go out to lunch with your co-workers all the time and eat the cheaper food at home.

I also don’t have a huge “set” of work outfits. I used to have to keep at least three sets of pants and shirts that I would wash part way through the week and then I would change out of my clothes when I got home. Because I work from home, my work clothes are my after work/weekend/whenever clothes. The clothes I do need for work/client site visits gets used so infrequently that I’m still using the same set.

What’s Difficult

It Can Be Lonely

The downside to working at home is that it can be a little lonely. I like my “alone time” so this has only occasionally been a problem and because my wife takes care of our child I’m able to come visit them.

We have had people quit because of the separation they have from the office.

Not Doing Housework

When I first started working from home it was difficult to not do laundry but I just told myself I couldn’t do house work during “work” hours. The urge to do laundry and load the dish washer is still there but I’ve been able to hold it off until lunch and after work.

So Much Food

The biggest temptation when working at home is my refrigerator. It’s so easy to just walk into the kitchen and take whatever I want to have for a snack. I’ve had to limit myself to a small snack in the afternoon or it’s too easy to eat something horrible for me.

Conclusion

Overall, I think everyone should be working a remote job if they can. I believe that my quality of life is MUCH higher then having to spend all that time in my car and it’s been a huge cost savings for my family.