We only get to hear that remote jobs are flexible, comfortable, and even fulfilling for many. There isn't so much talk about how there are also downsides to the "flexible work style". Remote jobs are good, a lot of people want to sit in the house to get all of the job done. The thought of even being stuck in traffic for unbelievable hours  (especially if you have a job in Lagos) is dreadful. So, instead, they opt for remote jobs. 

However, we must come to terms that there is also a flip side to this famous work style. While we talk about the advantages of working from home, we will also discuss the part that mostly gets swept under the carpet - the cons. Read on. 

Pros of Remote Jobs

Remote jobs have quite a number of advantages and little wonder people are moving towards it. 

You get to be the Master of your own time

The idea is to work from your house or anywhere you deem fit but at the same time, you can choose when you want to. If you think you are best productive at 9:00am, remote jobs let you do just that. At the same time, if you are going to be occupied most of the morning, you can get your tasks done by noon. The point is, you can decide what to do with your time as long as you get the job done. 

You can work more than a job

If you are an entrepreneur, then remote jobs will work perfectly for you. You can take time to respond to your customers, sort out orders, request new products, and connect with dispatch riders even while you have a 9-5 running. Also, you may not even be an entrepreneur but if you have multiple skills and you are lucky enough to put them to use in different organizations, you can do it provided you are allowed to work remotely. Who doesn't love multiple streams of income? No one. So, if you think you can juggle both jobs, don't stall. That's the benefit of working remotely. 

Your mental health gets on a good ride

Several people have experienced pressure and burnout because of having to quickly resume work, start tasks early enough, do extra work, and even put in more than they can give. All of these activities are rampant within the office environment, and because employees are in physical contact with the organization, it may be hard to do things their own way. All of these can take a toll on a worker's mental health, especially when they remember that they have to resume to the same office the next day. Working remotely shields you from office excesses and keeps your mental health in check. You don't have to attend to an extra task if it comes in after the close of business. Also, when you work from home, you can control the pressure. 

Self-Development happens faster

Even after you get a job, it doesn't end there. The beautiful thing is for you to grow in your career everyday, if possible. Many times, we come across people saying that they are "self-taught" and that they learned certain skills on their own. Remote jobs give you the time you need to check out other things that can help you grow in your career. You can divert the time you could have spent in traffic to check out a new course or learn something new on YouTube about your current role. You can do more for yourself as a remote worker. 

You can easily set boundaries

There are times when you don't want anyone in your business while you work. When you work from home, it is easy to not have anyone disturb you or come over to see what you are doing at work. Also, you don't have to drum your rules into anyone's ears. All necessary communications happen via Slack or Zoom and end there if you draw your lines well. 

Cons of Remote Jobs

Remote jobs, although the most convenient workstyle, has its downsides too. Here are some of them: 

It doesn't work for extroverted people

Some people, even while at work, like to share ideas, banter in real-time, and brainstorm with their work buddies. This is how they get productive - interacting with people and if they have to work from home, it might make them less efficient. So, if you ask them, they would rather show up at the office everyday than be stuck at home having no one to spill their ideas to. 

You could work from dawn to dusk if you don't manage your time well

This is quite common. Remote workers do not designate a closing time for themselves, they just keep working until they feel tired enough to let go. Having this habit as a remote worker is unhealthy and the results may not be good enough. For instance, if you are a programmer and spend hours coding, you could do that the whole day and even resume it the following day because you are finding it hard to crack a code. Breaks are necessary but being a remote worker makes you overlook this. 

Solid Collaboration takes so much effort

People bond better in person than over phone or video calls and this explains that so much effort and intentionality must go into facilitating vibrant teams in an organization. Most of the people who work remotely have really never met their colleagues in person and maybe, have even never single-handedly spoken to them except during meetings. Teamwork and collaboration are essential to every growing organization and if employees have to work from home, they must be actionable about maintaining the purpose of a "team". 

Projects "may" take a longer time

Chances are there may be a miscommunication along the lines of a project and this may cause it to take longer than stipulated. Compared to meeting in person, some employees may not quickly grab the idea of a project via messages except when it is explained to them over and over again. Such projects can stall and this may be discouraging to other team members who are looking to move ahead. 

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