I work from home most of the time. There are a few reasons for this.
Having lived in major cities for many years (London then Sydney) one
reason was downshifting to a smaller town where the quality of life is
much higher. The downside is that there isn't a lot of interaction
design going on here, which means most of my clients are elsewhere and
often in other countries.
When I have been on-site, it's usually to do brainstorming sessions
and nut out the creative. The rest of the time on-site is mostly spent
in front of the computer anyway and I'd prefer to have my own office
environment for that. The upsides are many – flexibility, comfort, low
overheads, etc.
The downsides are fewer, but I do miss the social interaction
sometimes. (When I am writing, however, it's perfect not to have
anyone else there). Regardless of what others think about the
technology, things like Twitter, Last.fm and Skype have made a huge
difference to that aspect. Twitter replaces the usual studio banter
(mostly) and I can turn it off if I want. There are always other home
distractions, though, and it's important to create space and time for
this. Good presentation by John Cleese about this: http://www.polaine.com/playpen/2009/02/24/john-cleese-on-creativity/
My time in Australia taught me a lot about working at a distance
because if you're in Sydney and working with a client in Melbourne,
it's still a long way to travel just for a 45 minute meeting. So
Australians are very used to working remotely (maybe like the USA?).
In Europe there is more of a mentality of "you have to be there" but I
think this is often unnecessary, particularly in an age of carbon
footprint consciousness and financial crisis.
Best,
Andy
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Andy Polaine
Interaction & Experience Design
Research | Writing | Education
Twitter: apolaine
Skype: apolaine
http://www.polaine.com
http://www.designersreviewofbooks.com
http://www.omnium.net.au
http://www.antirom.com
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