working from home/being the default parent

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is why I hate telling people I work from home. How unprofessional can you be?

For god's sake people, this kind of thing happens to everyone not just moms/parents with sick kids at home. I have been on conference calls with men who are driving - I can hear the traffic and can tell that you are not completely focused; and both men and women working from home and then the doorbell rings, a dog barks, contractors make noise, etc. It's hardly the end of the world. Not the best situation for important calls with your boss and certainly not for a client you need to impress, but for the everyday, run of the mill conference calls we all participate in, not at all a big deal. And I'm sure OP did fine even with the hopping 7yo.

[Anonymous]

I hear ya. I'm responsible for everything and work full time in a professional role. I came home early cause DC was sick. Got a call with a job offer - cue screaming fit and vomit down my shirt. new company was like "do you always have your kid at work?!"

Ugg... Now I look like an unprofessional mess and feel like a bad mom..

[Anonymous]

How many of you *at* work are distracted with DCUM, Facebook, etc...?

[Anonymous]

Many people work from their home office because they don't have an office to go to. Many, many companies have satellite employees in areas that it doesn't make sense to have an office. Of course others will hear kids, door bells, dogs barking because it is a home. I think in this day and age, people accept that there is the occasional background noise during a business call.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Many people work from their home office because they don't have an office to go to. Many, many companies have satellite employees in areas that it doesn't make sense to have an office. Of course others will hear kids, door bells, dogs barking because it is a home. I think in this day and age, people accept that there is the occasional background noise during a business call.

During a performance review?

[Anonymous]

I work from home and have lots of work but tons of flexibility in how I accomplish that work. With what I do, it's hard for me to take a day off because that means I have double the work the next day. So when kid is sick I work as much as I can and then work some more at night or whatever. But, yeah, it's always me taking the hit. My husband will just say I wish my job is as as flexible, but it's not. Which is true, so I suck it up, but it don't think he realizes how lucky he is or how much more I do in terms of child rearing. That shit really adds up. And my boss is lucky that I work every day. If I actually took those days they'd need to hire someone else to accomplish the tasks. There are some lazy teleworkers, but some of us are probably taken advantage of (and do the work of two people) because we're supposed to be so grateful for all that wonderful flexibility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not understanding how all these teleworkers are having their kids interupt them when they are working. If you're working (telecommuting) you shouldn't be parenting. If you're parenting, you shouldn't be working. Gives all of us telecommuters a bad name and potentially ruins the perk for the rest of us. Get back up child care or take leave!

I have full time child care from 8 to 6; 9 times out of 10, I have no problem. Occasionally, one kid will be napping and the nanny runs out to drop the other kid off for a play date and the napping one wakes up, or sometimes she'll be helping one kid on the potty and the other will yell upstairs that she needs something, or occasionally the nanny will be preparing dinner and one of the kids will come knock on my door. It's just life. They know to leave me alone if I'm on a call, and most of the time they do.

I suspect everyone here has child care, it's just not possible to never ever ever have a kid interrupt you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I work from home and have lots of work but tons of flexibility in how I accomplish that work. With what I do, it's hard for me to take a day off because that means I have double the work the next day. So when kid is sick I work as much as I can and then work some more at night or whatever. But, yeah, it's always me taking the hit. My husband will just say I wish my job is as as flexible, but it's not. Which is true, so I suck it up, but it don't think he realizes how lucky he is or how much more I do in terms of child rearing. That shit really adds up. And my boss is lucky that I work every day. If I actually took those days they'd need to hire someone else to accomplish the tasks. There are some lazy teleworkers, but some of us are probably taken advantage of (and do the work of two people) because we're supposed to be so grateful for all that wonderful flexibility.

I'm super curious about what kind of work you do!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not understanding how all these teleworkers are having their kids interupt them when they are working. If you're working (telecommuting) you shouldn't be parenting. If you're parenting, you shouldn't be working. Gives all of us telecommuters a bad name and potentially ruins the perk for the rest of us. Get back up child care or take leave!

Wow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Many people work from their home office because they don't have an office to go to. Many, many companies have satellite employees in areas that it doesn't make sense to have an office. Of course others will hear kids, door bells, dogs barking because it is a home. I think in this day and age, people accept that there is the occasional background noise during a business call.

During a performance review?

I don't think PP planned to have her kid home sick on the day she had her performance review. I'm sure that morning it was like a "today of all days?!" Moment.

Sounds like some of you don't even have kids?! I don't get it. How can you be a working parent and not immediately sympathize?! Or maybe you just have full-time "help".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just sharing because so many people can relate. I have a fairly flexible job. My 7yo is sick today. I worked from home. No problem. I also had my performance review. So my boss had JUST shared with me the two things I really need to work on in 2016, and it was my turn to express that I understand what she said and offer some ways I might do what she is suggesting (yadda yadda yadda) when my son bursts into my office hopping on one leg. He is smart enough to be quiet during the call, but I was trying to focus and sound semi intelligent while a goofy 7yo was literally jumping around me. This is part of why I will never have the success I would have if I weren't a parent (and the default parent who almost always takes on the sick kid, the school holiday, etc). That's it. This is real life. My son is completely fine, of course. He's just.... seven.

Ugh, I'm sorry OP - that's hard. I work from home so I can be the default parent, and phone calls are always tough. I do almost all of my work when the kids are in school or in bed, but things (including illness) happen. A performance review is really important though, and I would have asked my husband to stay home long enough for me to take that meeting in silence. Maybe next time around you can swing schedules so your review gets the priority it deserves to have?

[Anonymous]

Anyone who works from home even semi regularly knows it is impossible to parent kids under, say... 10... and work. One or the other. People who try to do both make us all look bad. Hell, I often have to shut my cat out of my office, let alone kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone who works from home even semi regularly knows it is impossible to parent kids under, say... 10... and work. One or the other. People who try to do both make us all look bad. Hell, I often have to shut my cat out of my office, let alone kids.

She had a sick kid but tried to attend to her work responsibilities anyway. That's not taking advantage or making anyone look bad.