It's the latest thing

If you are a regular visitor to this little corner of the World Wide Web (does anyone actually call it that anymore, and MEAN it?), you know that I was recently displaced by my former company and was about to start a new job with a different, larger organization.  I’m nearing the end of my second week and thought I’d share some observations about my new company and my role within it:

First, and probably most obviously, is that after ten years of working from a home-based office, I’m now back in an office environment the majority of the time (that is, when I’m not traveling, and as a newbie, I’m not traveling at all yet.  When I worked at home, I had a routine that was a little unorthodox, but since there was no one present to arbitrate my schedule, I could do as I needed to do.  Now, I come to an office, where it’s not that rigid, but it’s a place outside of my home, so that’s an adjustment.  And it’s twenty or so minutes from my home, so I had to develop some new routines pretty quickly.

I get up earlier than I used to, because my desk isn’t twenty feet from my bedroom!  I exercise right after rising, where I used to work that in when time permitted after breakfast at my desk.  And instead of pondering what to eat from among the choices available in my kitchen at home, I’m trying to decide what restaurant to visit for that day’s lunch. 

The plusses are that decent coffee is available at no charge, there’s an ice and water dispenser in close proximity, the restroom isn’t far from my office, and, after fearing I’d return to being a cubicle-dweller, I have an office.  With a door and everything.  The funniest aspect of that is that the furniture in it is kit furniture not unlike what I used to use in my home office, before I invested in better hardwood items.  It serves the purpose, and, after I rearranged it to my liking, I cleaned all of it, so I know now that it’s in pretty good condition.

No one seems to watch my comings and goings, which was a pleasant surprise.  On my third day I went to tell the department administrative assistant that I was stepping out for lunch, and her response was that no one needs to let anyone know where they are, since we’re all connected with cellphones and such.   Fine by me.  And my boss is in Florida, working from a home based office of his own, so while I have regular interaction with him, it’s not in person and it’s not obtrusive.

No, so far, my working life has been a sea of online training modules, conference calls and little else.  I assume that when things get going for me, starting with a face-to-face meeting with the primary contact of my assigned client (with my boss, thankfully) later in the month, that things will change.

I was told during the hiring process that it would be wise for me to be in the office most, if not all, of the time during my first two or three months on the job.  Transitioning back to working at home would be most welcome, so I’ll look forward to that happening.

For now, it’s working out OK.  But I miss my more comfortable desk chair and other little things that aren’t possible to bring to the office.

But I’m working, and that’s the main thing.  And I’m most thankful for that!