There are many benefits to working from home, not only are you surrounded by your loved ones (the dogs), but not being in the busy office environment can also help you to be more productive due to having less distractions.
Working remotely also cuts down the commuting time to zero, meaning you can sleep in a little extra in the morning allowing you to feel less tired.
Not only that, you also get to work alongside your home comforts too, and that includes being able to wear slippers all day.
Whilst some jobs allow flexible working – heck, some jobs are permanently remote – it might seem like an uphill struggle to convince your boss to allow you to work from home.
If this is the case for you, then let us take a look at the number of ways you can politely ask your boss to reconsider the option of working remotely away from the office.
Why Work From Home?
Not all of us are made for the office environment, especially if we have spent a number of months working remotely and have found that the job is able to get done efficiently without the need for being inside an actual office.
With the likes of Zoom and Microsoft Teams, work spaces and the overhead costs that come with them are not essential like they once were.
Okay, so not all professions can exist without an office, but yours obviously can, otherwise you would not be reading this article.
Even so, thanks to the likes of the internet and these online professional spaces, we can communicate easily and when needed, rather than having to make small talk and spend hours trying to fix something that could have been done over email.
Whilst an employer might think working from home will give you more distractions and less time to build up ‘work relationships’, it actually is not the case.
According to Employment Hero, 32% of employees say they are more engaged with work when working from home, compared to the 28% in the office.
Research First
It can be tempting to want to ask your boss straight-up if you can work from home, but you will want to make sure you can back your reasons up with data. If you do not have this available, then your reasoning behind why you want to work remotely will fall flat.
Luckily, there is plenty of data available on how working from home can benefit an employee. Whether this is flexible working, so days at home and in the office, to working from home full-time, there is growing evidence that it can positively impact a person’s work rate.
Some great places to look for stats and information are Findstack, Forbes (who say 97% of employees do not want to return to the office full-time), and Employment Hero.
Your Impact
If you want to work from home, listing reasons how you impact the company will be beneficial, especially if it happened during your time working remotely.
An employer will want to know how you work alongside the team, more so when working away from the office, and how efficient you have completed tasks or have gone above and beyond.
If you can prove that you make great judgments, get work done, and use your time efficiently to benefit the company, then your employee may just have to consider letting you work from home.
Trial Run
If you have never worked remotely before, then you can always do a trial run. This means working away from the office a few times a week to see how it impacts the company and your team.
This is also a good option if you want to go back to working from home, as it can show that you are still just as beneficial away from the office as you are in it.
In fact, perhaps show how much of a hard worker you are away from the office by either taking on extra work, or spending more quality time getting work done.
Put Yourself In Their Shoes
Even though you will have remote working on the brain, to get an all-round feel of what your question might mean to the company, imagine you are the boss.
How do you think an employee asking to work remotely might impact the business? Also, will other employees ask to work from home too?
Would it be better if the employee only worked remotely a few days a week, rather than on a permanent basis? And what are the mental health benefits to employees working from home?
Whilst you might think it is the perfect idea, it might not be seen as so helpful to those higher up, and you will need to know why just in case things are brought up that you were not expecting.
Go In With Two Angles
Once you have considered every area, and are finally at the stage of asking your boss to work from home, you will want to bring two things to the table: how working remotely will benefit you, and how it will benefit your boss.
When it comes to you, be as honest as you possibly can. You are working from home to avoid the horribly long commute, to spend more time with family and to be more productive.
For your boss, you could mention how productivity may rise for those who work from home which is beneficial for getting work done.
Money can be saved each year by not using the office, with those who work from home more likely to become more involved in their own work, as well as team work.
Using stats where possible, make sure your claims are backed up, but do not overdo it. Whilst you do want statements to be fact rather than fiction, just using one or two percentages will get the message across.
If Your Proposal Is Rejected
Not every workplace will allow remote working, so it is always best to go into the meeting knowing that your boss might just simply say no.
They could also just need time to think about it, which is the most likely outcome. This could ultimately end in a full on ‘no’, but it could also just be a way to discuss it with colleagues before making a final decision.
Instead of quitting your job, accept it and move on. There could be a chance to approach the subject again in the future, or you could even look for a job that allows for remote working.
If you are needed at the company, then there is a possibility you could get flexible working put into your contract.
Final Words
Working from home is an ideal solution for many. It has been proved that it can help with productivity, make the employee more impactful in their job, as well as boost mental health.
If you are looking to ask your boss if you can work from home, then it is not surprising that you might not know how to approach the subject. So long as you are honest and know the facts, asking to work remotely should be a breeze.
After all, according to Employment Hero, by 2028 around 73% of teams will have some form of remote based work allowed for their employees.
