Do you work in your pyjamas?

I often think we’ve been so slow to offer home working as a real alternative to commuting to an office.

Usually those thoughts come to me when I’m on my 30-40 minute each way journey to and from work. On the occasional bad day I add up in my head all the time I’ve spent commuting in my 13 years of working so far then think about all the things I could have achieved while behind a wheel simply getting from A to B. Volunteering for a charity, reading classic literature, watching silly videos on YouTube.

As a society we have developed technology which means there are practically no limits to the ways we can communicate, and most tasks can be executed equally well whether behind a desk or atop a mountain. It does seem madness that despite this, more than half the population are thrown out onto the street at exactly the same time, twice a day, with all the environmental and economic impact that has.

I am not a morning person, so usually I’m thankful of the half hour driving to properly wake up and come round. It’s not completely wasted as I listen to the day’s news, which is an important part of my job.

I like working around other people, so don’t think I’d want to work from home full-time, but I do think that there are times when it would make me more productive. I’d gain time from starting work straight away instead of deciding what to wear, putting on make-up, straightening my hair and travelling. And working home would give me the peace and quiet to concentrate and write well that can be difficult to find in a busy office that is open to the public.

I do most of my blogging at weekends and often look forward to this time. By then, I’ve usually had ideas for things I want to write buzzing around my head for days so will get cracking first thing in the morning. That’s the beauty of blogging I guess. It’s a whole lot easier if you’re in the right frame of mind, so you often just have to grasp the nettle if you’re in the zone. If that’s in bed still in pyjamas, so be it! (If you’re interested in my blogging process, I’ll be telling you more about it next week when I’m taking part in a ‘blog hop’).

Depending on what else I have planned over a weekend, this is how I might start a Saturday or Sunday when I have time aside to blog. I might ease myself in gently by doing some admin and reading and replying to emails, or just open up a new blog post straight away if the thoughts are swarming in my head. After an hour or two, I’ll probably have breakfast and get dressed, but by then I already feel like I’ve made a good start.

Insurance company Axa say 4.2 million people in the UK who run their business from home. They’re running a competition to win an iPad mini just for snapping a selfie of you homeworking in your pyjamas. Be quick though it closes tomorrow!

Do you work from home or would you want to?

*written in association with Axa, but content all my own