Working at home

I have spent today working from home, awaiting the delivery of a wedding dress that, as of 16.05 has still not arrived. Bloody Parcelforce. I’ve had a phone call and a text from a friend in the lab enquiring as to my whereabouts, or, more precisely the reason for my non-appearance today. I must be in an especially pensive mood at the moment as it’s got me thinking.

The thing is, I’ve done so much reading today, it’s not like I’m skiving. I’ve actually allowed myself to immerse myself in what I’m reading – and I feel so much the better for it. For one thing, I've not turned on the computer until now. I’ve moved from my bed, to the floor, back to my bed, downstairs, and now to my desk. I’ve punctuated reading with sorting out some paperwork, plucking my eyebrows, reading old study notes. I feel inspired. I feel relaxed. No WAY could I do that if I’d gone into uni today.

Apparently a recent study found that for office workers (i.e. those sat at a desk all day) only 30% of their time was actually productive (very unscientifically I don’t have a reference for it). ONLY 30% of their time was spent doing what they were paid to do!

I just don’t work well spending all day at a desk. Sometimes I NEED to lie on the floor or curl up in a corner to read effectively, and in a lab or any open-plan office that’s just not possible. Even if I had my own office I suspect any passersby who caught me in such an unseemly position would think me decidedly odd. But it’s just not normal! Why do we do this to ourselves? On top of the having-to-sit-at-a-desk-all-day, it is assumed we will do this for seven hours every day, with only a lunch break and a couple of tea-breaks to punctuate it. It’s madness!

I know that I for one can spend several weeks doing this every day and achieving very little, then spend one morning deep in concentration and achieve more than I have in all that time. The crazy thing being that it is then assumed that I’ll work the rest of the day. When I’ve used that much mental energy in such a short space of time there is no way I’m going to be productive that afternoon and I’d do much better to go swimming or take the dog for a walk. But cultural expectation is that I’ll be in the office until 5. But because I’m that much more drained, the next day I’ll be less productive. Note to self: maybe I need to ignore what people think and just do what I think is right.

This last idea is especially relevant to my supervisors. You see, I have five. FIVE! And although it’s brilliant that I have a panel of experts to help me when I get stuck, it also means I have five people to report back to. Which can be demoralising when you’re not being very productive. Bad enough one, let alone a cohort. Added to this my main supervisor is some sort of superhuman work machine, and isn’t that much older than me. But I have absolutely no aspirations to become any form of academic. How do I explain to a supervisor that my PhD actually isn’t the most important thing in my life? It’s way up there, and I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else right now, but when push comes to shove, family, friends and God come first. Ah the tension of the 'real' world, and what I consider the real world (i.e. God's world). Dagnammit, maybe I’ll find some answers at some point...