Whenever I tell people I work from my home office, 9 times out of 10 their response is “Wow, that must be great, no commuting”.   Yes, it’s fantastic, I love working from home, no commuting, no early morning make up applications or fighting with those darn panty hose (which for me is an event all to itself because I’m guaranteed to go through at least three pairs as the first two pairs will have runs in them).

I love the fact that my weekly wage is not going directly into my gas tank, and that my daycare is half the cost it would be if I worked outside of the home.  All definite advantages to working from home!

There are downsides and I’m sure I’ve written about them already, procrastination, staying motivated, work/life balance and of course dealing with distractions.  

Up to this point, I’ve been pretty good at managing the above, until this week.   Working from home is great, until your home becomes a construction site. 

Yes, that’s right; my home is undergoing some major renovations, an addition over the top of the garage.  My family has outgrown our current living quarters and since we love the neighbourhood and the people within our neighbourhood, moving was not an option.  So we chose to add on.

What the heck was I thinking???

Working from home right now, has lost some of its appeal.  It’s great when it’s a day like any other, but add 4 guys with jackhammers, saws, and hammers….and I’m ready to take on those panty hose, get in my car and commute just about anywhere.  This is the first time I’ve actually been envious of my husband as he gets into his car each morning.  

I’m normally pretty good with distraction; I can pretty much tone out anything and focus on the task at hand. I can have Dora the Explorer blaring in the background “Swiper, NO Swipping” (if you have young kids you know what I’m talking about), my dogs barking at anyone who is even remotely close to our house, my daughter throwing one of her “she’s going to explode” tantrums….but this week I’ve found my match, the one thing I can’t tone out.

When the walls are shaking and the roof next to where you are working is being sawed off, I’m sorry, my focus is gone and getting it back is nearly impossible.

I’ve had to pretty much adjust all my familiar processes/procedures to accommodate the construction. The far bedroom is taking the place of my office right now, as it’s the only room that I can seem to mute the background noise.  Meetings are now arranged for evenings as the guys end their day at 4:00pm and my quiet is restored. 

The simplest of my daily working routines have now been turned upside down.

So, you may be asking “Why don’t you just leave and work elsewhere?”  Good question!

The answer is “Because I work from home!”  We work at home individuals are pretty resilient, we have to be.  It’s a testament to the challenges we face on a daily basis of working where we live.  Not everyone who works from home may be facing the same distraction I will be for the next 4-5 weeks, but it takes a certain type of individual to make working from home actually work.  

So, yes, it has its advantages, but there are also disadvantages, it’s not as easy working from home as one may think….come try working at my house this week and see what I mean!