you a marketer, then you are lucky because you are in a profession that gives a lot of rope to choose how and where you work. You can work from home or have an office job while the ideal situation would be to have a mixture of both.
Working from Home
There are clear advantages to working from home. You can cut out at least 2 hours of your day based around work, spend that time to earn more cash, or fit in exercise routines that would be difficult if you had an office job. The reason for this additional time is that you will cut out travel time. Adding to this, when you do not travel, there are no travel expenses which can add up if you live in an expensive city.
As a freelancer working from home, you also get to choose where you work. You have the freedom to work overseas if you have nothing tying you down or you can travel and work with no limit to the amount of time you can travel. That is of course if you have decent internet.
This also gives you the perfect excuse to go out there and buy home gadgets that will make your life more comfortable. You also get to choose the equipment you work with.
Something else that most freelancers tend to add as an advantage to working from home is the fact that they are their own boss and can manage their own hours. Dental appointment in the morning – no problem, you can just work later into the evening. That said, you do still have customers to keep happy which to some extent is like having a boss but you get to pick and choose who those customers are in an ideal world.
Lastly, you get plenty of peace and quiet working from home as long as your home set up allows you to. If you have children and they have school holidays, then you can always set quiet time hours or find a coffee shop or workspace. Unfortunately, working from home is not for everyone because living conditions may not be ideal for home freelance work.
· Save time by not travelling to work
· Save money by not travelling to work
· Work from coffee shops or while travelling
· More time for exercise and family
· You are your own boss to some extent
Working in an Office
Office workers are somewhat controlled by their work. Although there is an increasing number of jobs nowadays offering their employee Flexi hours, this does not always work well in teams unless those teams have synergy regardless of their working hours.
The one key advantage of working in an office is the social element. Home freelancers with a sociable personality tend to struggle with this side of working from home while office jobs are ideal for those that are social.
As marketers, offices are also great places to quickly bounce ideas around but with webcams, chat apps, and collaboration tools, life for home freelancer has become easier in this respect.
Another notable advantage to working in an office or having a full-time contract is sick pay and holiday pay. You may also get a pension scheme, medical and dental insurance, plus access to many other benefits which a home freelancer would have to set up on his or her own.
Some people are not good at mapping out their career or motivating themselves and this is exactly why an office environment suits them. While freelancers are driven by their billables helping them self-motivated, office workers are driven by their team members, supervisors, and managers.
Also, working with others and sharing knowledge as well as trade secrets tends to progress much faster in an office than a freelancer at home. Most freelancers will need to take the time to do their research and sift through all the noise on the internet – office workers can pick up most of this information just by listening, from casual conversations, and by watching what is happening within their work environment.
· Offices suite sociable individuals
· More jobs offering flexible hours
· Brainstorming can be easier
· Sick & holiday pay + benefits
· Managers can help with motivation
The Ideal Marketing Situation
Ideally, if you had a freelance job that gives you the flexibility to work from home and work maybe 2 days a week in an office then you will get the best of both worlds. Traversing rush traffic will not seem like such a chore and some cases you may even look forward to hustle and bustle of busy subway or train journeys. If you prefer to drive, then that works too. As a freelance contractor, the choice is entirely down to you.
In the meantime, you get a rest bite from the fast-paced office environment by working from home on weekdays you are not required to be in the office.