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Is it a bit isolating? It is for me, and it’s a concern, but that’s outweighed by everything you mentioned. It would be nice if there was some happy medium. Bu

Is it a bit isolating? It is for me, and it’s a concern, but that’s outweighed by everything you mentioned. It would be nice if there was some happy medium. But what is that?

mrinfinitiesx 2y ago
Hobbies. Groups. Classes, MMA/Self Defense classes, computer clubs, local singles groups. you want to not be isolated.. trust me.
kevingadd 2y ago
You could always take the time you save by not commuting and go outside for walks or a drink at a bar or what not. I make a point of walking to the local farmers' market a couple times a week now to spend some time around people, get a meal, etc.
skadamat 2y ago
I've been working remotely since 2015 essentially and here's my perspective on overcoming the feeling of isolation. In order from highest to lowest impact: - Not commuting gave me more time to do physical activities socially. Tennis with neighbors / friends in my town. A group spin class. - More time to embrace serendipitous hobbies in person with friends (or excuse to meet strangers in my town). New Nepalese restaurant with promising reviews? Randomly go with a friend on a Wednesday. New coffee shop? Try out their pourover to see if they know what they're doing! - Try working from near home. Coworking space, coffee shop, etc. Workbar offered pretty affordable part-time coworking rates last I checked? Cal calls this "work from near home" - https://calnewport.com/thinking-outside-the-home/ https://calnewport.com/thinking-outside-the-home/ - Meet a life partner who also works from home 1-2 days a week! We've enjoyed random 3 PM walks, making breakfast together, etc. - Remote work works best with results oriented work environment / culture. So feel free to do a tea tasting or go watch a movie in the middle of the day - https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/09/want-to-boost-your-productivity-hit-the-movies-during-work-expert-says.html https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/09/want-to-boost-your-productiv... - Do 1 completely casual Zoom meeting with a coworker every week, even if you don't directly work together. The 9-5 commuting lifestyle makes it easy to "bundle together" lots of habits that solve for isolation, time to wind down / prep for the day, and for many a workout routine (workout before or after work in a nearby gym). When you work from home, these are all "unbundled" so you have to re-assemble the things that matter to you yourself. More freedom but more responsibility :)
ubertaco 2y ago
I see this sort of question whenever this topic comes up, and I think it's interesting that there's a baseline assumption of a false dichotomy between "in-office interactions with employees of the same company" or else "isolation", as though those are the only two options (which is understandable, since American culture is pretty skewed towards defining people by their jobs -- the classic problem where people tend to answer "what do you do?" by talking about their job). I've been working hybrid or fully-remote on and off since about 2009 (with "fully-remote" being my state since about 2019). I get quite a lot more time to spend around people who are close to me -- friends, family, my community -- precisely because I'm not driving 60 miles round-trip every day anymore. Encountering this same type of dichotomy in my adult context is kinda amusing to me personally, since I encountered it often as a kid, too; I grew up homeschooled, and heard the same baseline assumption (but with "employees at the same company" swapped out for "students at the same school") presented in another frequent question: "but how do you kids ever socialize with other people?" In reality, I was often involved in daytime extracurricular activities (and weeknight/weekend ones) that had me working, volunteering, field-tripping, or just hanging out alongside multiple groups of adults and other kids on a regular basis. Living in community can happen by choice, not just by [employer || school] coercion; it just requires that you make that choice.
- arresin 2y ago
  There is something that happens though when you’re in the same space day after day. You feel a deeper level of connection and bonding. Like being at school and seeing your classmates everyday. It defies logic.
  - eska 2y ago
    Then why do most bonds formed in school not last for most people? Why do most co-workers not turn into lasting bonds when changing companies?
  - ronhav3 2y ago
    And yet, when a coworker leaves, he quickly dissapears from our conciousness. These "bonds" are an illusion.
karaterobot 2y ago
One thing I tried at first was to organize a shared workspace for friends, where we'd get an office somewhere near our homes, rather than downtown, and come in to the same shared space so we could hang out and shoot the shit. It was very hard to settle on the right location that wouldn't just create a new commuting challenge for everyone, and office space (and parking) is not cheap. I eventually found an okay spot, but COVID quarantining put an end to that. I imagine office space is cheaper now, but I have not had a strong urge to try again. I do agree that it's isolating. But only during work hours. After work, and on the weekends, I see people a lot more than I did when I was in the office. Overall, I feel like I get more social time than before, but it's with people and in situations I choose. And I also get a lot more breaks in between, which I like.

Is it a bit isolating? It is for me, and it’s a concern, but that’s outweighed by everything you mentioned. It would be nice if there was some happy medium. But what is that?

mrinfinitiesx 2y ago

Hobbies. Groups. Classes, MMA/Self Defense classes, computer clubs, local singles groups. you want to not be isolated.. trust me.

kevingadd 2y ago

You could always take the time you save by not commuting and go outside for walks or a drink at a bar or what not. I make a point of walking to the local farmers' market a couple times a week now to spend some time around people, get a meal, etc.

skadamat 2y ago

I've been working remotely since 2015 essentially and here's my perspective on overcoming the feeling of isolation. In order from highest to lowest impact: - Not commuting gave me more time to do physical activities socially. Tennis with neighbors / friends in my town. A group spin class. - More time to embrace serendipitous hobbies in person with friends (or excuse to meet strangers in my town). New Nepalese restaurant with promising reviews? Randomly go with a friend on a Wednesday. New coffee shop? Try out their pourover to see if they know what they're doing! - Try working from near home. Coworking space, coffee shop, etc. Workbar offered pretty affordable part-time coworking rates last I checked? Cal calls this "work from near home" - https://calnewport.com/thinking-outside-the-home/ https://calnewport.com/thinking-outside-the-home/ - Meet a life partner who also works from home 1-2 days a week! We've enjoyed random 3 PM walks, making breakfast together, etc. - Remote work works best with results oriented work environment / culture. So feel free to do a tea tasting or go watch a movie in the middle of the day - https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/09/want-to-boost-your-productivity-hit-the-movies-during-work-expert-says.html https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/09/want-to-boost-your-productiv... - Do 1 completely casual Zoom meeting with a coworker every week, even if you don't directly work together. The 9-5 commuting lifestyle makes it easy to "bundle together" lots of habits that solve for isolation, time to wind down / prep for the day, and for many a workout routine (workout before or after work in a nearby gym). When you work from home, these are all "unbundled" so you have to re-assemble the things that matter to you yourself. More freedom but more responsibility :)

ubertaco 2y ago

I see this sort of question whenever this topic comes up, and I think it's interesting that there's a baseline assumption of a false dichotomy between "in-office interactions with employees of the same company" or else "isolation", as though those are the only two options (which is understandable, since American culture is pretty skewed towards defining people by their jobs -- the classic problem where people tend to answer "what do you do?" by talking about their job). I've been working hybrid or fully-remote on and off since about 2009 (with "fully-remote" being my state since about 2019). I get quite a lot more time to spend around people who are close to me -- friends, family, my community -- precisely because I'm not driving 60 miles round-trip every day anymore. Encountering this same type of dichotomy in my adult context is kinda amusing to me personally, since I encountered it often as a kid, too; I grew up homeschooled, and heard the same baseline assumption (but with "employees at the same company" swapped out for "students at the same school") presented in another frequent question: "but how do you kids ever socialize with other people?" In reality, I was often involved in daytime extracurricular activities (and weeknight/weekend ones) that had me working, volunteering, field-tripping, or just hanging out alongside multiple groups of adults and other kids on a regular basis. Living in community can happen by choice, not just by [employer || school] coercion; it just requires that you make that choice.

arresin 2y ago
There is something that happens though when you’re in the same space day after day. You feel a deeper level of connection and bonding. Like being at school and seeing your classmates everyday. It defies logic.
- eska 2y ago
  Then why do most bonds formed in school not last for most people? Why do most co-workers not turn into lasting bonds when changing companies?
- ronhav3 2y ago
  And yet, when a coworker leaves, he quickly dissapears from our conciousness. These "bonds" are an illusion.

karaterobot 2y ago

One thing I tried at first was to organize a shared workspace for friends, where we'd get an office somewhere near our homes, rather than downtown, and come in to the same shared space so we could hang out and shoot the shit. It was very hard to settle on the right location that wouldn't just create a new commuting challenge for everyone, and office space (and parking) is not cheap. I eventually found an okay spot, but COVID quarantining put an end to that. I imagine office space is cheaper now, but I have not had a strong urge to try again. I do agree that it's isolating. But only during work hours. After work, and on the weekends, I see people a lot more than I did when I was in the office. Overall, I feel like I get more social time than before, but it's with people and in situations I choose. And I also get a lot more breaks in between, which I like.