LornaJane

Although it seems impossible, I really have been in my "new" job for 6 months. The big change this time around is that my new role is based almost entirely from home - I'm a salaried, 40-hours-per-week, home worker. This post is about my experiences adapting to this change rather than the new job itself (its going rather nicely, thanks for asking!)

The first thing to say about telecommuting is that it isn't for everyone - and the second thing to say is that I absolutely love it! I wasn't expressly looking for a remote position, and there are definite downsides, but I find it really suits me nicely. Strangely I'm a really sociable person most of the time, and I go a bit crazy if I spend too long on my own, but working on my own is a revelation.

Workspace

With excellent timing, we finished turning one of the smaller bedrooms into an office just a few days before I started looking for a new job. It has lots of storage, more network and electricity than I know what to do with, and a nice view of my (completely overgrown) garden. It also has a door that shuts and a futon for visitors to sit on. I acquired the large desk out of the study bedroom I had as a teenager, and have a fabulous office chair to sit on.

Communications

The thing about working remotely is that it can be quite isolating. For quite a while now I've had more interaction with online friends than coworkers - and even when communicating with co-workers I have usually used IM. So to be physically elsewhere actually makes little difference except I don't have to hear their music played too loud over headphones or someone typing really loudly. I like to interact with people and found it quite easy to get to know my new colleagues, although it took time to meet them all in real life. It is often difficult to ask for help, but I'm very good at it (ask any of my usual questioning targets) and I find everyone very sympathetic and helpful even when my problem is actually that I'm having a "blonde moment". In a real office, I'd probably ask the person next to me to cast their eye over my code and spot the problem - and its actually not that tricky to do it with a physical divide. I use IRC, Skype, twitter and pastebin to interact with various people - coworkers and other techies.

Working Hours

I'm contracted to work a normal working week, and although I have flexi-time, so far I'm dodging the bullet of losing too many hours to working when work and home are the same place. Part of that is that I'm a morning person anyway, and I work for a Dutch company so I usually log in early my time and join in their morning greetings. I also have a social life which is adapted around working a 9-5 office job - so I'm out most evenings. Add into the mix a partner that does work those regular office hours most of the time and needs his dinner at the same time every day, and you can understand how I find it possible to work regular hours and still play hard as well. There are plenty of distractions around the home, chores to do and games to play, but I'm trying to stay in my regular pattern of working in the daytime and saving everything else for evenings and weekends. Being at home though does mean that lunchtimes can include a nap or a swift round of mario kart, and if I put my washing on the line I can go and rescue it if it rains!

I've skated over the downsides, the days where you don't know what you're doing and the person you're trying to get hold of isn't answering emails or phone calls. Or the days when things are going really wrong and its hard to know what other people are doing and who you might interrupt for help. All in all though, its all good, probably helped by having a job that is stimulating, and colleagues that are friendly. Having discussed this with a few different people, I am of the opinion that not everyone would experience this the same way have. But for now, life is good.

Here's the view from my hotel balcony yesterday evening:



So far the Netherlands is a great experience, my colleagues are friendly and its a lovely country to visit.

For once it'll probably be pretty quiet around here next week. That's because I'm catching a ludicrously early plane to Amsterdam in the morning to spend a couple of days in the Ibuildings Vlissingen office, and then flying direct to London to work there the rest of the week.

There are going to be a lot of firsts, I don't fly a lot and haven't flown outside the UK alone before - so flying through both Schipol and Heathrow in the space of a few days is going to be probably a bit scary! I don't visit London much either (haven't been for almost a year in fact) but I have an Oyster card and an underground map to assist me. I'm also delivering training for Ibuildings which is a new career step for me but one that I'm very excited about (as well as hyperventilation-inducingly anxious) so all in all its going to be a pretty exciting week! I'm also getting to meet colleagues from both offices and practice my dutch for real :)

(Of course, there will be lots of blog action if I find myself at a loose end and with internet connection!)

On Monday I start my new job and I'll be mostly working from home which will be nice, but quite a change. I have a lot of online friends that I have yet to meet in real life but to have a whole set of colleagues, some of them in another country (IBuildings is a Dutch company) is all new to me. It'll be nice to avoid the annoyances of sharing an office, with other people's music and cleaning up after others too. I know I am organised and self-motivated enough to manage the working patterns as well, which is one less thing to worry about. If I had needed to be in the office every day, I simply couldn't have managed it as they are based in London. In preparation for next week, I thought I'd share some photos of my home office. To the left are my flower pictures that I found in a box when we moved, they came from another house we previously rented.



I also have some essential accessories for any office: A map of the world and a nabaztag. This one is called Tag and is our second one of these rabbits.



Finally, check out my lovely big office chair, modelled here by my Christmas bear, now named Busibear as he lives in the office and oversees business. The chair was a birthday present from my parents, thanks mum and dad :)




I have a nice new notebook and a futon for any visitors that pop in, I think I'm all set...

Following on from my post about needing a new job, the observant among you may have noticed that I have yet to post the promised sequel about myself and my skills. That's because I don't need to - I have a job! I will soon start a job with IBuildings, an amazing and energetic set of people, and I'm wildly excited. They are based in London but I'll be telecommuting most of the time.

Its been a funny few months, I've been very active in the PHP community, mostly because I've needed some professional support and they are a wonderful set of people. They have been graceful to accept my attempts to contribute to the community and have supported and encouraged me every step of the way. Through this I came to do a PHP|Abstract podcast, a talk at a BarCamp, quickly followed by being stalked and offered a job by a very good local-ish employer. I ended up passing on the opportunity because it was the kind of local that is too far and awkward to do in the rush hour for every day, however the experience was amazing and I met some great people in the process. I studied for and managed to pass my ZCE exam, and in the same week parted company with my employers of almost a year. In the last five days I have communicated with some superstars from my industry, looked over my shoulder to find the other lornajane that surely they are actually looking for, received two excellent job offers from two uber cool companies, and accepted one of those offers. I owe thanks to many, many people for the moral support, listening and general egging-on they supplied - guys, you know who you are.

After all that - I need a nice cup of tea and a sit down ... :)

I'd like to announce that today I parted company with my employers Coolpink to the satisfaction (and probably benefit) of both sides.

To answer the first three questions: Yes, I am fine. Yes, they are paying me my notice period so I won't starve. And yes, I need a new job! I'll put up a coherent post on me and my skills soon.