From WFH to Choosing to Go Back to the Office 100%

I worked from home for nearly three years straight — from the first wave of Covid lockdowns until I got terminated (laid-off) in February 2023.

And now, head of my own freelance enterprise, I rent an office space and go there five days a week. I’ve realized that when it’s work I enjoy, I need an office space to perform at my best.

In my last “real job” (permanent, full-time work), I worked from my home office in the basement. I went to work office from time to time when required, but I chafed at it — the act of having to drive 20 miles to sit in a cubicle and (still) work remotely with my California-based coworkers. (Minnesota branch of a Los Angeles company.)

The office — tripped out in ping pong tables, a Nespresso machine, and hot plates — was not my vibe. The Fun Committee tried hard to make it appealing. There were mystery murder games and jigsaw puzzles and a “We Are Family” hot dog cookout in the parking lot (pre-Covid).

And my anxiety was through the roof. Deciphering eye rolls or figuring out who to sit next to for lunch was shades of middle school all over again.

So when I started my content writing business last winter, I thought I wanted a different coffee shop-office every day, my tabletops strewn with artifacts to show how consequential I was — I thought I could be ultra-cool and productive.

That strategy worked for 2.5 days. Artsy coffee shops in trendy parts of town don’t have free refills or free parking or anything on the menu less than $6.50.

I found an an office space, a shared collaborative work hub in Uptown where you can rent an office, desk, or hot seat (camp out anywhere not claimed) on a month-to-month lease.

The office is off the greenway so I can ride my bike to work and then park it inside, and it meets all the initial minimum requirements I had set:

• Sunlight (walls of windows and natural light)
• Printer
• Endless flow of coffee
• Second monitor for my laptop

Beyond that, I have a dedicated space to work — and to physically leave all of my tangible work.

And also a place of wellness. The office contains a huge gym designed for people with laptops who work out, like the row of treadmills with laptop docks.

Perhaps the most surprising benefit though has been seeing other people.

In my previous jobs, having coworkers was the most stressful part. I mean, sure, I’ve made great friends among coworkers over the years. But the daily interactions with coworkers — people who see more of me during the week than my own kids and spouse — could feel agonizing. Especially with the friction of having to work with them. (Someone drops the ball on a project and you get the blowback, and now you’re both in the elevator together.)

There are now familiar faces I like seeing every day. I don’t have lunch or happy hour with them; I don’t know that’s ever occurred to me. I’m not seeking new friends or companions. But there is a definite psychological benefit to being in the society of other adults and occasional, casual exchanges of goodwill.

Everything is light. They are my office roommates, not coworkers. We never disagree or butt heads in meetings, or CC bosses on emails, or piss the other person off in interactions tied to our livelihood. It’s a low-pressure, no-stakes sort of vibe.

Some days, plodding away on my laptop from the couch feels more appealing — and is honestly more productive. I want to wear soft pants and eat cheese doodles and not brush my hair.

But most days, I want to not look at laundry or toys or the empty fridge and wonder what’s for dinner. I don’t want to look at countertops and side tables and see dual work surfaces. I want a focused zone to get work done — not to mention a reason to get dressed in non-rumpled clothing and venture out-of-doors.

I wonder if other people reticent to go back to the office would actually enjoy it in limited dosages, or if they had a different job altogether? Maybe remote workers working in four professional office walls of their choosing — not their house — is a compromise employers can stomach and the future of workspaces?

A couple of my office “roommates” have a monthly stipend from their employer for that very purpose.

I know there’s more complexity to the WFH or back-to-office tug-of-war. And I know there is collaboration that happens when people are in the same room that virtual conferences can’t replicate.

Yet I was firmly entrenched in being work-from-home, and have done a major reverse.

In the age of DoorDash and Instacart and Amazon, working from home added to my isolation. I didn’t feel particularly isolated — my husband and kids keep me occupied — but each new reason we don’t have to leave the house is another twist of the knife.

Since I’ve again started going to the office every day, I’ve started going to grocery stores again. And making more trips inside of Target instead of ordering home delivery through the app. And just doing more of life offline, instead of online. I think I’d forgotten how much I like the screen-less world.