By Erin Robinson, SBA Loan Administrator, Core Bank Loan Production Office
Working in my pajamas? Having my dog resting peacefully at my feet? No make-up, heels or panty-hose? Yes, please! Taking a 20 minute snooze on my couch on my lunch break? Sign me up. I can’t begin to tell you how excited I was to dump my 45 minute commute (each way), leave my car in the garage, and begin a new journey of working from home.
Of course, many of us do some work while at home even if we typically go to an office. We stay caught up with projects and email on our laptops or phones. But this was the chance for me to work full time from the comfort of my once spare bedroom turned home office. I still got to work in SBA lending (which I have a passion for.) But without all the interruptions or commute. It was a done deal.
Week one went very well.
I had all of my equipment including phone, printer, computer, dual monitors, all the goodies. I was loving the work, the ability to call or email co-workers when I really needed help or conference calls and team meetings. Best of all, my dog was right there by my side.
Fast forward a couple months and it wasn’t going so well anymore.
It was harder to get up in the morning, harder to resist cleaning that bathroom or catching Dr. Phil. I still enjoyed the work itself but had lost my motivation! I started to do some soul searching and realized that even though I was a self-labeled introvert, I missed being around people. I still can’t believe I just typed that… or felt that.
I missed putting make-up on and having to be accountable in-person. I missed lunches with co-workers and brainstorming together for ideas and SBA Standard Operating Procedure interpretation. I even missed the commute – music in the morning and NPR on the way home. I made the decision to find a “normal” office job again and started looking.
Core Bank. Problem Solved.
The following sayings have real meaning for me: the grass is always greener on the other side and everything happens for a reason.
Now that I work for the Core Bank Loan Production Office, I get to go to an office again. All of my experiences working from home taught me to appreciate the commute and the people I work with. And my dog is so happy to see me at the end of the day! I’m at a great bank and I still love my work.
Working from home definitely had its perks, but it’s not for everyone. Not even this introvert.