When the pandemic introduced her to working from home, Amanda Wang wasn’t quite sure if she’d have the same sense of workplace camaraderie and corporate focus that she got from going to work in an office every day.
Wang, who is a product manager for a software company, must consult with a vast network of co-workers from many different departments before recommending which project her company should tackle next.
With careful planning and video conferencing, however, it has been a smooth transition. And thanks to avoiding up to two hours of commuting per day, she has been saving $250 a month (even before gas prices jumped recently). “It’s been a great experience,” Wang said. “It’s absolutely fantastic.”
She also enjoys engaging on social media with reThink Your Commute – the Florida Department of Transportation’s program that offers advice on commute options and more. “There is a lot of helpful information,” Wang said.
Without two-hour commutes, she has more family time with her two children and fewer rushed dinners or hurried bedtime routines. “It’s not a mad scramble,” she said.
Wang said she’s saving on auto maintenance and office clothing. She also doesn’t have to use her paid time off (PTO) days for childcare on days when her children are sick. Instead, she can use her PTO days for true vacation time, or if she is sick. With the time she is saving from not commuting to work each day, Wang also has more time to spend on other activities, like exercising, riding bikes with her daughters, or walking the dogs in the afternoon.
She believes that options for working from home will continue to expand, because the home-based approach works for everyone – from stressed parents to marginalized workers. “This really opens up the workforce to people with disabilities, transportation limitations, and others,” she said. “I’m excited to see where we go from here.”
