The hubbub over Yahoo’s decision to nix telecommuting got a lot of people talking this week about the potential distraction of working from home.
But what about those office distractions?
About than half of the more than 38,000 people who took our poll this week dismissed the idea that working in an office is more productive. Instead, they said, this much-vaunted “exchange of ideas” you get an office is more of a distraction.
Anyone who’s ever had a lengthy “exchange of ideas” with a co-worker who’s had a complicated health problem, relationship drama or parenting issue probably knows what these readers are talking about.
“I telecommute on occasion and I find I get twice to three times as much done when I work from home. Part of this is due to no co-worker distractions - and while I am certainly always open to discourse, it does interrupt the work flow,” one reader wrote.
Many readers noted that in this modern era, there are plenty of ways to stay connected besides physically being next to each other.
“In the 21st century, it's not necessary for workers who have the right tools to work side-by-side in order to share ideas. Email, instant messaging and online discussion forums -- not to mention the good ol' fashioned telephone -- provide those functions quite nicely,” another reader wrote.
Still, others readers argued that people are more productive at the office, where they can see co-workers, be seen by the boss and not be distracted by household chores.
But some readers said it’s really about the worker, not the location.
“If people are lazy, they're going to be lazy anywhere,” one noted.