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Comment by ex_ex_nihilo | Hacker News Reader

I would never go back to commuting to the same place every day. It's cool that he does the coworking thing, but I've been working remotely for 6+ years fulltime (and I have other periods of 2-3 years at a time working remotely interspersed through my 20+ year career in software), and I would not give it up for anything less than a C-level role at this point. Most of the benefit to me is the lack of routine. Routine stifles my creativity. I don't want to go to the same place or do the same thing every day.

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>Most of the benefit to me is the lack of routine.

Wow, this is literally the exact reason I loathe remote working! I've been working remotely for almost 5 years now and I'm about to jump ship at my current job specifically so I can find a job that has a physical office to go to. I find that the lack of a routine causes a significant increase in stress in my life. It's an actual dream of mine to go back to a 'normal' job where I go into an office and sit at a normal desk with a normal work schedule, and then can just go home or to the gym at 6pm and enjoy my non-work life.

Personally, I find having a space dedicated to work helps tremendously with this. When I am in my "office" at home, I am working. When I leave the office, I am not working.

Having that separation helps me "leave work" when it is technically at the same location. It does also require a good bit of discipline because it is easy to slip back into work at any point in the day.

Many argue that you should "work when you feel like it" but I personally find that leads to burn out. If I can keep a regiment that I don't deviate much/at all from, I am mentally healthier.

> work when you feel like it == burnout city

yes because most of us don't know how to turn that off!

Mental health must become a priority when working remote. Separation is a key way to stay ahead of the degradation. Even if you're not a person who tends to go outside, you HAVE TO when you work remote. Lack of face to face interaction will eat you very slowly over the years.

It can't just be with your usual people either. You need to have a level of unexpected interactions with other humans to stay a happy person. I'm not a psychologist, but I've had this happen to me and any other colleague I know who worked remote. It's a very real thing – respect it.

My experience is that a work laptop is enough.

All the work code, emails, tickets etc. are on it and once it's closed for the day I it needs to fired up again to do any additional work, which surprisingly serves enough as a barrier.

I have a third option, work time. I have specific, inviolable times when I get on and off work. Past 8, I am off work and all work-related notifications shut off automatically. I've found this helps perfectly isolate work from life.

Working whenever you feel like it is hell, I agree.

That’s how I currently work too. It helps that the company has to follow strict compliance rules, so the work equipment is strictly for work.

> Wow, this is literally the exact reason I loathe remote working!

I've been remote working for years and I now find that my most productive times are "in-the-zone bursts" of work. What used to take a whole day I can now get done in a couple of hours.

So, now I find less of an imperative to keep a structure. My new rule is to just be very vigilant about when my brain wants to do the work... and when I get the feeling jump right in.

It's weird but it seems to work well in my case!

I have been working remotely for the past 4 years and every day has been routine. Walk into my my home office at 8, work until 12, take an hour lunch and work until 5. For the first couple of years I had issues with overworking myself not being sure of my productivity, but after setting hard limits to never stay in my office after 5 and to stop worrying about my productivity my stress levels normalized and nobody reported negatively on my productivity. It was all in my head.

My experience working remotely is almost the same as working in an office. My only added benefits are a lack of commute and job opportunities that aren't available to me in the small remote town I'm in. If it wasn't for remote work I wouldn't even be a software developer. This allows me to be a software developer and raise my kids in the same town as their grandparents. In fact living in the same town I was raised in may aid in the social isolation a lot of people feel. I could see working remotely in a town you have no/small amount of friends being very isolating.

I’m the exact opposite. My general perspective on life is to be able to do what I want, when I want to do it and remote work with a flexible schedule enables me to do that. I absolutely hate being told I have to sit at a desk and be somewhere between some prespecified hours.

I work remotely and have a very consistent schedule / routine. I have a family so that helps in terms of company in the house reminding me to leave the office.

When I leave my office (a dedicated space), I'm done for the day, but that's also due to the culture at my workplace. It's possible to have both, is all I'm saying. Remote doesn't mean no routine.

More power to you! Everyone should find his own preferences and strengths and lean into them, imo.

Were you sociable before going remote? - My biggest issue when I have periods of work from home from my job is getting very lonely from not speaking to anyone in person all day. But I imagine if I was a fully remote worker I would make active changes in my life to see more people every day.

“But I imagine if I was a fully remote worker I would make active changes in my life to see more people every day.”

That’s one of the biggest improvements in quality of life when I work remotely. I find working in an office (especially open space or cubes) very exhausting due to noise and lack of privacy. So I come home at night totally exhausted and do nothing. When I work from home I naturally feel motivated to do something after work which I find very positive.

It will force you to find social outside of work, but that's a good thing to do in general. Once you start getting out the house at what is normally work hours you'll start to meet other people who work remote.

But, and this can be hard for people, you have to make an effort to be social. The default that someone works with you they will likely have to talk to you is no longer an option.

I am a very extroverted person and require social interaction to not become depressed. My job is a little different in that I'm customer-facing and have to travel to customer sites from time to time. I also have a family (wife and 2 young daughters), and I enjoy the opportunity to interact with them throughout the day. I have a separate area of the house that is mine, and they know not to disturb me while I'm working (which is often, but on my own schedule). To clarify: Wife is a SAHM. I also work for a Bay Area startup, which has perks in terms of flexible schedule and unlimited PTO.

That is the harshest adjustment. I had to make accommodations as my mood plummeted immediately. I work every morning at the coffee shop which gives me some social exposure and pseudo interaction. Merely being around others, and bright light, helps. I don't have to rely on meetups much anymore, but that's a very useful tool. I particularly enjoyed pick-up sports, non-fiction discussion, etc.

You have to integrate more socializing into your life or you will not make it in the long run. If a remote worker tells you this doesn't bother them... ask them how long they've been remote. If it's less than 5 years, it's slowly eating at them and they don't realize it yet. Even the most introverted homebodies need to do this for remote jobs IME.

I've been remote for 10 years and I agree. I was traveling around Asia for the first year or so and now am married and have a son.

I need socialization at least once/week or I start getting depressed.

+1 for this. Been remote ~5 years or so now and it's lonely. There are weeks where, outside of work calls, the only people I talk to are clerks at a checkout counter.

I've found that getting involved in some type of group activity is super helpful for that.

I'm into music, so I joined our local community choir. It's not necessarily the style of music I listen to on my own or like to play/perform (I'm more into guitar and folk music), but its a very social activity that gets me out of the house once a week, with people that I have some things in common. I've made some great friends and got to know a lot of people in my community that I would not have otherwise.

I really start to miss it when we're off-season (long summer break), because of that feeling you get when you haven't left the house for a week or so. :)

I would have periods of becoming unsociable if I was heads down all the time. Practice makes perfect, you know?

Becoming remote didn't change that. But traveling while being remote did. It's hard not to walk into great wall of socializing to balance out all the abstract work we do day today.

Personally, I kicked started it by putting all my stuff in storage. I also started slowly by traveling within the US and moving month to month. My boss does it cool, important to note that not all remote work environments will be okay with you traveling.

I work from home, a bar or coworking and I mix this with work trips abroad lasting 3 to 10 days where I get my share of social interaction.

It also makes me appreciate time with my family more.

Balance is the key.

It's very subjective and varies but I find it not too hard to attain.

P.s. I've been working remotely for 18 years now.

I've been working remotely the same amount of time. I used to work remote for a local Chicago company and there were plenty of opportunities for social interaction. Now I'm working remote for a Bay Area company and it's pretty isolating. My wife's Christmas party is a highlight of the year.

When the spouse work-related social meetups become the highlight of the year, something is wrong.

Some parts of the world can be isolating. You may want to talk to your wife about moving back to a more civilized place.

Chicago is a pretty civilized place.

Exactly my point. A place where people can easily socialize, regardless of job or social status.

OP, talk to your spouse and try to go back there!

We live in Chicago. I work remote for a Bay Area company.

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