Telecommuters are the Wave of the Future
In the “good old days,” your dad or grandpa went to work every day. Nowadays you can have a home office or even work remotely from anywhere in the world, as long as you have a fast enough internet connection.
We’re more connected than ever before in history. The advances in technology are so fast that it’s changing the world we live in and the way we do business. It’s also creating opportunities to live in a completely different way.
Almost 3 percent of the total U.S. workforce work from home at least half of the time. Statistics show that roughly the same amount of women and men telecommute demonstrating that both genders are taking advantage of this modern way of earning a living.
In more than half of the top U.S. metro areas, telecommuting exceeds public transportation as the commute option of choice. It has grown far faster than any other commuting mode.
It makes perfect sense. Why would you commute to work when you can start work at your own pace and on your own time? You don’t have to worry about traffic delaying you or causing stress.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average travel time to work in the United States is 25.4 minutes. Of course, some cities are more densely populated, and places like Los Angeles or New York have way worse commutes. The average commute in LA is over 50 minutes. Washington DC has the longest commutes in the whole nation at over an hour.
Losing such huge chunks of time traveling to and from work could be a waste of your life. If you’re able to cut out the time it takes to get to and from work every day and still be as productive, telecommuting is the obvious choice.
It’s not just time that is being wasted, and time is money. But money is also money.
The cost of travel adds up fast. It’s an added amount you have to pay out rather than simply cutting out the travel. If you have a car, the costs can be big. If you have a monthly repayment on a loan, it can add up to a lot of money in a year.
The average monthly car payment on a new vehicle in the U.S. is a hefty $479. Add to that wear and tear, insurance, and any repairs or smog checks, and you swiftly see a big outgoing amount. Some folks even have to pay for their own parking when they get to work!
Some factors should be looked at when you are thinking about telecommuting. Is your role suitable for being out of the office environment on a daily basis? Can video call conferencing minimize the amount of time you have to commute by letting you work from home a few days a week at least?
A big concern would be security issues. Studies show that 70 percent of employees actually want to work from home, but they are worried that by doing so they will be “always on,” and their work will take over more of their day-to-day existence.
In the end, it is all about balance.
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