What you have learned or found out about yourself during Covid WFH?

I learned that my team is way happier, they think they’re more productive (via an anonymous survey to the whole team), but by most measures they just are not.

Code is taking longer and is introducing more bugs per sprint, budgets are up slightly, and hours are flat. I desperately want to give my team permanent WFH but I can’t do it if we can’t course correct on product development quality.

Btw, I hated WFH before pandemic but love it now. That said I go in once per week and find I get a ton more at work done than at home, probably because I have a 4 and a 1 year old at home (love seeing them during the day!)

We do need to figure out what hybrid looks like. Or set new expectations of what a “productive week” looks like.

I realize how important physically segregating my workplace and my bed are.

Also I realize how much I need quality relationships as a single 30-year-old dude. I graduated business school during the pandemic. I moved back in with my parents for a couple months, and I decided to move back out when it became clear my parents’ favorite activity of late has been watching Fox News and then spending the next day raging about all the things Tucker Carlson told them to get mad about.

At the same time, I do yearn for more human interaction, particularly physical affection. I hang out with college friends, but a major priority I had for when I graduated business school was to un-single myself, and I’m really struggling to make that happen.

That I’m a freaking beast who just survived the terrible twos with little to no childcare or support and a successful large implementation as a single mom

Working from home has improved my quality of life tremendously. I exercise more, I eat better, I have time to see friends more, I’m able to spend more time pursuing hobbies (like guitar) that I wouldn’t be able to spend time on when traveling every week... I’m much, much happier.

I also learned that the “need” for our weekly travel prior to COVID was a farce. There is no need for traveling every single week, and on weeks we actually *might* need to travel (project kickoff, close outs, key milestones), traveling Monday - Thursday is also a bit unnecessary.

I am not just an introvert... I’m a hermit

I can stay green on teams from my couch

I learned that I don’t use the extra time I saved from not commuting to better myself in some way but rather just lie in bed, aimlessly scrolling through my phone.

I wish I never have to see or speak to anyone ever again. I love being home, seeing one or two people regularly and seeing the rest over zoom calls once in a while. I’m really OK with that.

I’m wayyyyyyy more of a city person than I realized. My partner and I moved to the burbs so we could have office space for WFH. The extra space is incredible, but I truly hate it here. I really miss having amazing restaurants and parks a short walk away. Conversely, partner has discovered he is definitely a suburbanite. Will be interesting to see how we resolve this new conflict once our lease is up.

Women use a ton more TP than men! 🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻🧻

I hate working in the office. As a result of working from home my quality of life has improved drastically. I have lower stress, more free time, I eat better, I picked up new hobbies and I’m much happier. I live alone too. I wish I could work remotely permanently but it doesn’t seem like the accounting world wants to entertain that thought still.

Idk how I commuted 2+ hours a day before all of this. There is no way I can go back to doing that everyday. I get so much more done now and I actually have time to make food and workout

I can't trust myself to WFH.. I don't need hand holding, but people working around me & that pressure/office environment is necessary 😅

I dislike wfh when it’s forced but love it when it’s frowned upon.

I’m a lot more depressed than I realized

I’ll go first. There is no chance I’ll get a lot of reading done or learning a new language if I’m locked up in some place

Didn’t realize how much I loved TV.

I can take my wife in small doses

I get a lot more work done at home generally, but it also drives me crazy. Being at the office tires me out more but I need to get out of the house some days. My ideal work environment would be half my time in the office half my time at home.

WFH is only good if your team is good. Also, how important in person human interaction is for mental and physical health.

My old life and schedule really sucked.