1. We are extremely lucky to work in the industry we do. By having everything online, it’s just silly to not be able to work from home. When you have a group of trusted individuals who get their stuff done and are accountable for it, it is such a nice benefit to work from home. I find it funny with micromanagers in a big corporation who think working from home is an excuse to slack off. If that’s the case, you’re clearly not doing something right. But, micromanaging rants can be saved for another blog post.
2. When 2 of the 9 people in your office have swine flu, you can avoid them. Plus, you don’t actually have to take sick days. It’s so nice to stay home when you’re not feeling well, but still be able to get your work done and not cut into your vacation or personal time.
3. Fresh air and change of scenery. Everyone can use that.
4. It tests communication skills. Are we working in the most collaborative way? Does the weakness show more when we’re out of the office? If so, what do we do to solve the problem?
5. Nooners. Kidding. I swear.
6. It helps put work life vs. personal life in perspective. Some things that tend to stress me out when I’m in the office just aren’t that big of a deal and aren’t worth adding the extra years to my life. It’s good to get that periodic reality check.
7. Pajamas. Enough said. Well, not really. You also don’t have to put makeup on or do your hair…until George surprises you with a video chat. Course, it’s worse when he does that during #5. Ah, kidding again. Really.
8. For some reason, I feel like I can take a step back and become more strategic. I have the time to look at the big picture, our process, client goals, etc. I’m not sure why, but I do. Maybe it’s because I get to dodge phone calls for a day, and really focus on some of my own goals.
9. Healthier lunches. I LOVE going out to lunch with my colleagues. It provides a much-needed break in the day, and is a great time to talk about our shenanigans outside of work. However, with that comes lunches that are much larger and much higher in calories. I know, I know. With some discipline I’d be better when at work, but where’s the fun in that!?! At least when I’m home, I have a damn good reason for staying home to eat.
10. Everyone’s super duper excited to see you when you get back. It’s just one big love fest. Seriously.

What did I miss? What are you favorite things about working from home?

I read an article a while back about how your spouse or significant other can drastically affect your good and bad habits. Makes sense, right? If your sweetie is going to the gym, you’re more likely to tag along. On the flip side to that, if your darling honey bear likes to eat out and eat often, you are more likely to follow suit.

So what about the people that you spend 40 hours a week or more with? How much influence do they have on your habits? Here at Imulus, we have 10 employees. So, needless to say, we’re a pretty tight knit group. We all go out to eat together on Fridays, and some of us go out to eat every day.

It’s especially difficult to refuse the lunch invite considering the fact that most of us exercise the use of peer pressure. I can’t count how many times someone has brought their lunch and has been talked out of eating it. This is, of course, a compliment to the victim of said peer pressure. We like spending time with each other and taking an hour out of our day to relax and shoot the shit.

This could present a problem. Especially if the choice of Big City Burrito arises. However, as aforementioned, this can also cause a positive impact on your co-workers when so many of them are advocates for health and fitness.

When you are surrounded by people who are often talking about which foods are good for you, (our accountant used to be a nutritionist for goodness sake!) you can’t help but let it seep into your brain – try as you might. Not only that, but Imulus provides breakfast foods every Monday morning which usually lasts us the whole week. Instead of the breakfast burritos or the bagels with cream cheese, we now have fruits and bread. This sets the tone for the rest of the day by eating a piece of toast and an apple.

Not only that, but just by working in Boulder, Colorado I feel the influence of being a healthier individual. Boulder has such a variety of different healthy restaurants, eating healthy even when you’re eating out is much easier.

Plus, every (that’s right, every) employee of Imulus is active. When your boss always uses his lunch break to go work out, it’s hard not to be influenced.

Moral of the story? Not sure. I guess what you can take away from this is try to ignore those bad habits of your employees. Maybe you’ll break the mold and be a good influence on them. If not, at least you’ll look hot.