A couple of years ago, I was working for a very bureaucratic company in a low-walled cube, being forced to ignore unpleasant distractions around me, and I hated

A couple of years ago, I was working for a very bureaucratic company in a low-walled cube, being forced to ignore unpleasant distractions around me, and I hated the commute. I was one of their more productive developers, so I asked them to let me work from home. They sort of went for it: they agreed to two days in the office, three at home. I really enjoyed those three days at home, and I was way more productive. I eventually had to quit that place, because it just got too horrible, but I've been trying to get another remote job ever since. In the last few months, I finally succeeded. I got myself hooked up with a contracting company. They find iOS jobs for me to do, then subcontract my time to other companies. And I get to work from home 100 percent. I had to take a severe pay cut to make it happen, but for me, it's worth it. I enjoy that I can make a better environment for myself than any office I've ever worked in. I have lots of space, a window, a door that closes, and a huge Apple monitor. A whole bunch of quality-of-life things I couldn't ever convince employers to give me. I can take an hour off here or there to take a nap or walk the dog. And there's no commute. Eventually, I can move somewhere cheap, to make the most of my income. This is the life for me. I admit that there are inherent communication problems. As other people have mentioned, you have to be a fiercely determined self-starter to make this work. But looking back on it now, the stuff typical employers expect you to go through -- for me, there is no comparison. You'll have to pry my remote job from my cold, dead fingers.