Some decades ago if you had a job, you certainly have to work in an office located outside your home. You would have to get dressed, forego the comfort of your sofa or bed, and hit the road. Even to date, many people’s job entails them leaving their homes for work. However, in today’s world, many people are employed never to endure the usual hassles of hurrying up to the office. These individuals are requested to work for an agency or organization without being present in the physical building location of the agency or organization. This type of employee iscalled ‘remote workers’.
You know, certain tasks do not require physical presence such as online marketing, graphics design, computer programming, and their likes. Thanks to the power of the internet, the company benefits by having to expend physical space while the employee benefits by enjoying other activities while working during the day.
Remote jobs are not very new, although many employers were not keen on them. When the Covid pandemic struck, they had no choice but to restructure their line of operations to accommodate remote workers. Even after the pandemic, a lot of companies didn’t fully return to having their employees being physically present.
Now, this is not to confuse working from home with remote jobs! Did raise your curiosity? Hold your horses, you are about to find out what differentiates them both!
How is work from home different from a remote job?
You know, when you tell someone that you work from home or that you do a remote job. The image that plays out in their head is a roughly kept bedroom with socks on the floor, dirty clothes humped on the floor then a table with computer gadgets and some communication gizmos. You and I know that this is far from what defines a work-from-home employee or even CEO and a remote worker. Well, although they are similar because you do not have to work in a corporate environment, they have little differences. Work from home would involve setting up your office in your home however with remote jobs you are not limited to a particular location. With remote jobs, you have a flexible work schedule and you can travel to places you wish to go to as long as you have fluid communication access to the organization you work for. However, in most cases, they are used interchangeably.
Does remote work have advantages?
Without a doubt, there are certain positives to working remotely. You can rest in between jobs conveniently with the recreational activities you love. You also have enough space to explore other flexible remote job opportunities at the same time. You can also choose to study, develop your skills and improve the quality of your resume. In addition, not many people enjoy working under direct supervision. You will also avoid the hassles that come with having to deal with colleagues who are difficult to relate with. Now, this is the most interesting part for me. I love the roads, the cascading nature beside the highway, and the wind that hits your face when you pop your head out of a moving car. Remote work allows me to earn while I live the life of the roads I cherish.
Are there disadvantages?
Of course, many things in life answer to the good and bad states the universe presents. In remote work, you have to hope certain factors act in your favor. Working remotely, you have to depend on the internet for almost everything you do. This means that when there is a disruption in internet access or speed, your work may be affected. Also, you would hope that power is never interrupted. Canada enjoys a great deal of electric power, however; there may be cases where natural events like strong winds pull down power lines. In cases where you would need technical support, it is easier to find help when you are in a corporate environment. You could simply walk to another desk and ask questions. If your company doesn’t have strong technical support, you may not get help quickly.Changing the work environment from a corporate venue where you are equipped with gadgets to a remote work setting poses a problem if the worker lives a traveling life. Some jobs would require high-definition cam sensors, high-qualitymicrophones, multiple monitors, and so on. Imagine the stress involved, traveling around with all these and setting them up whenever you temporarily pitch your tent. However, looking at these, you will agree with me overall, working remotelyis a great idea in a country like Canada.
How is remote work traveling like in Canada?
Citing the problems I mentioned above, let us quickly consider the features of working remotely in Canada.
Before the advent of the lockdown caused by the pandemic, many employees preferred to work on site. Even when the Canadian government enforced the lockdown rules, quite a number of employees sought eased restrictions to allow them to get to their workplaces. However, after the lockdown was removed, many Canadians have become used to remote working. A poll conducted in 2021 showed that in previous years, Canadians didn’t mind sitting out a 24-minute drive to work but as at the time the poll was conducted, the maximum amount of time 85% of the working population could spend on the road was 15 minutes. Canadians had become used to their homes even working from home. About 22% of the population want to work from home entirely.
Working remotely while traveling has given me some interesting experiences about the situation of remote work in Canada you’ll like to find out. For instance, in Toronto, you could basically sit in a public space and work. This is due to the great internet access the residents of the city enjoy. There are certain places on the outskirts however of the capital city of Ontario where internet access with high bandwidth is still a dream. One would have to enquire beforehand before traveling to such places. In a recent communiqué however, the authorities of the city expressed their intention to install fiber optic cables to enable low internet areas to enjoy fast speed internet. When it comes to the availability of power, it is equitably distributed across the city. Did I mention the warm feature of the city’s people? You could sit at coffee shops with glass frames for walls giving you an entertaining view of commuters as you work for hours.
Final thoughts
Remote work traveling is a pleasure for adventurous souls who wish to work and find happiness at other things at the same time. In Canada, the winds favor your sail; the odds are to your advantage. It is left for you to explore or excuse.
