At the year comes to a close, I have been reminiscing over the events that happened during 2020. This made me think; what good has come out of the pandemic? Our “new normal” could involve an opportunity to do projects at home, or make warm lunches, or even learn a new hobby? For me, professionally, it has been very much a roller coaster. Learning to work from home has been an enormous transition for everyone.
Prior to the pandemic, I would drive about 50 minutes to my office each morning. I would grab my coffee, bounce ideas with my colleagues, work on my files, attend examinations for discovery and mediations, and drive another 50 minutes back home. During the work day, I would usually warm up a quick meal and eat at my desk, or occasionally, with my colleagues.
In March, when the government announced that everyone that could, should work from home, we were forced to quickly began our work-from-home transition. Moving to working from home has presented significant obstacles for a lot of people. I have friends and colleagues who made makeshift desks, including at their dining room tables, in their basements, and even in closets! I was fortunate to have a great work set up at home. My partner insisted that we purchase two monitors, which made my transition to at-home-work much easier.
Although it has been tough to adjust to working from home, there have also been great benefits. Personally, my most practical benefit is my lack of a commute. I am able to work longer and more productively because I am not worried about traffic, the weather or construction. My commute was reduced from 50 minutes to zero, which has made it much easier to get started on work for the day and continue projects.
Please log in to read the full article.