Let me preface this article by saying I love working at home and I love what I do, but it’s not all working in your pajamas and waking up at 11 am. Although I personally believe the pros do outweigh the cons when it comes to freelancing, there are things that people don’t tell you about that I had to discover on my own. I’d like to give you guys a head up into some of the cons of working from home and also some of the ways that I’ve found to overcome them. So, let’s get to it.

The Cons of Working From Home

1. Weight gain

So if you’re coming from an office job, you’re used to sitting for at least 8 hours a day. Your body probably didn’t go through the shock that mine did. Let me lay out some of my past jobs for you, teacher, firefighter, pool boy, personal trainer and furniture delivery guy. I did none of those jobs sitting down, and so when I leaped into the world of freelancing, I thought it would be great to wake up, throw on some sweats and take the 3 steps to get to my computer (my apartments really tiny).

Don’t get me wrong, it’s great. However, I’m used to being forced to get ready, commute to work, work standing up, and commute home. That’s 9-10 hours of my day that I was usually active. When you compare 9 hours of moving around to the 3 steps I’m forced to take now to get to work, you could say I’ve put on a few lbs.

This was one of the cons of working from home that I didn’t foresee, and it’s something that I believe more freelancers should be talking about. You need to plan time to go to the store (walking if possible), plan gym time and time to move around because now, no one is forcing you.

If I didn’t have a schedule/habits to do every day, I would quite literally sit in front of my computer and veg. Being conscious about setting aside time to move is something that you need to learn.

Your health is a priority. As I’ve said many times and will probably repeat often, I believe a freelancer’s health is more important to that individual than someone who works at an office. I’m not saying we’re more important, I’m saying that if we’re sick, there’s no one to pick up the slack, no one to help out. As a freelancer, we’re on a bit of an island and if we’re not working, we’re not providing for our families.

So, take the time to plan out your schedule and make sure you make time to move. A standing desk or stand up computer workstation probably wouldn’t kill you either. Your work, body, mental health, relationships and bank account will all thank you. A few ideas from Diet and Fat Loss – 10 Hassle-free Tips for Freelancers can really get you headed in the right direction as well.

2. Sore everything

As I mentioned above, I’m not used to sitting for 4 hours a day working (yes, only 4. Standing desks are the best). That means my back wasn’t ready for the punishment either. I didn’t have a standing desk for the first year that I was freelancing, and my flexibility went from being able to touch my toes to struggling to scratch an itch on my knee. Everything in your body is interconnected so that means that my hips were off, which threw my back out of whack, which caused headaches, which means I wasn’t working as much, which means…I think you get it.

For me, my electric height-adjustable computer desk not only helps me control my weight, but it also helps me manage every aspect of my life. For example, having a sore back can mess with your sleep, not getting quality sleep means you’re less likely to hit the gym and more likely to make poor food choices. Those negative decisions lead to more poor choices and the cycle continues. It’s a slippy slope.

In my opinion, work and life productivity all start with your health. If your health is off you’re not running at 100%, and that means your work is struggling, your home life probably isn’t what it should be, your social life (wait, who am I kidding?)

Do yourself a favor, focus on your health and all of the cons of working from home will seem more manageable. Start with a stand-up computer desk or workstation. However, if you think a standing desk is made to stand at for 8 hours then stop right there, and read my article How to use a standing desk, properly. Hopefully, you’ll thank me later.

3. Zero social life

As I not-so-subtly mentioned in number 2. Your social life will most likely

struggle. Anyone who has started a successful business, and like it or not, freelancers are business owners, knows that the lion’s share of your time should be taken up by it. As a freelancer, you are the management, HR, workforce, customer service, marketer, salesmen, back office, accountant and custodian for your business. You’re basically the non-kidnapping, less crazy version of James McAvoy in Split. So, how are you supposed to find time for the guys or for a girls night out?

Human Interaction would probably help

This, unfortunately, is one of my weak spots and one of the cons of working from home for me that has had the biggest impact on me. When I finish work for the day, the last thing I want to do is get ready and go out. However, creating a network of other like-minded professionals will really help give you a bit of social motivation. Renting a coworking space might not be a bad step either. Check out either ShareDesk or WeWork to find a place near you.

Create a night of the week where you invite friends over if you don’t want to leave the house. Join a class or a league (sports, music, drawing, running, anything). As humans, we’re social by nature and forgetting about that project you have due on Friday will actually help you focus more and be more productive.

4. Too much freedom

This might be the least considered “downside” of the cons of working from home and many office workers may look at this and laugh. What does too much freedom mean? How is that even possible? Having your whole day ahead of you where you have to be proactively searching out clients and jobs with no boss breathing down your neck and no chance of being fired isn’t as easy as it sounds.

Whether it’s true or not, it makes sense to me that humans have a limited amount of willpower and each choice you make, no matter how tiny, depletes your store for the day (there’s new research saying it might not be entirely accurate). As freelancers, almost every minute of every day we’re making choices. Should I do invoicing so I can pay rent or the project that’s due so I can pay rent next month? Should I look for future, bigger clients or keep all the smaller ones I already have? Maybe I should stalk people on Facebook or Instagram? You know, day to day things.

You have to have a plan for each day and do some work-type triage. What’s most critical and what will get me the best result with the least amount of effort? Also, trying to set aside time to get to the gym, eating a balanced diet, and seeing friends all turns into a real-life game of never-ending Tetris, but that’s the life you signed up for when you decided to go boss-less. If you need some extra giddy-up check out my article: Time Management Tips to Reduce Stress.

5. Lackadaisical – The Cons of Working from Home

(I had to look up the spelling)

E-mail clients or watch Stranger Things? Send invoices or fall into a YouTube black hole? These are the difficult decision that we have to deal with every day. Some days, I almost always choose option B because well, it’s more fun, and I’m just not feeling it that day. As a freelancer, that’s your prerogative. You work when you want, how you want, where you want and at what speed you want. But just remember if you work slowly, poorly, and at midnight, you might not have the most successful freelancing career.

Being lazy one day is fine as long as it doesn’t hurt your business. If you’re happy with your workload, take a day off. Don’t beat yourself up about it. Just understand that you’ll have to make up for it later on a Saturday or Sunday but for you, days don’t really matter anymore, only deadlines and happy clients. You’re a freelancer now.

What are you waiting for?

If you’re already a freelancer then I’m sure you can relate to some of the cons of working from home, if not all of the things mentioned above, and if you’re thinking about making the plunge I don’t mean to scare you away. I’ve never been happier than I am right now with the choice to become a freelancer. I can go to the gym when I want, wake up late if I had a rough night, I don’t have to deal with coworkers that I didn’t choose for 8 hours a day, and I’m in complete control of my life. If having total power and responsibility over your life isn’t what you want, and it’s not for everyone, you might want to stick to your 9-5.

Have you found any of the cons of working from home that you didn’t know before you started?