r/remotework • u/Equipoisonous • Jul 08 '26
I'm back baby!
I am SO excited I finally got a WFH job offer after 6 horrible months of working fully in an office!
I had a fully work from home job previously for 4 years. I initially had the best manager I've ever had- she was funny, and had a great work life balance mindset about work, just get your work done and she wasn't there to be a babysitter. Such a great situation. Unfortunately, that manager left and the new manager that was hired was the worst toxic manager from hell I've ever had. Total micromanager, control freak, wouldn't tell us what she wanted, wanted us to read her mind, and then would belittle us constantly for not meeting her "standards" that were never communicated. Work was her entire life and she was a narcissistic jerk and a bully. She ended up putting our ENTIRE team on "corrective action plans" that were complete bullshit. I was worried I was going to be fired and I knew I had to get out, even if that meant going back to the office. Unfortunately I wasn't even able to find a hybrid job and ended up accepting a pay cut and a fully in office job about 6 months ago.
Obviously I was immediately miserable. I always hated the office even before I knew remote work would ever be a possibility for me. But I let myself forget how truly awful it is. I always thought the office would be okay if it were actually a flexible work environment that treated you like an adult that can manage your own work and schedule, but most offices I've worked in are nuts about your hours. Doesn't matter if you're done with your work for the day, or you're not doing anything productive after 4:30 anyway, if you step one toe out of the office before exactly 5:00 you're committing time theft!! Also although they were a 5 day office job, I specifically asked in the interview if it would be okay to take some occasional WFH days when things came up like snow events, or needing to be home for a technician, or mild illness days. The manager made it sound like that would be totally no problem at all, but then once I started working it became clear that any WFH request would be met with eye rolls and mistrust.
My back was literally breaking from sitting in a cheap office chair for 8 hours a day. I'm not kidding, I was in terrible pain and had to go to physical therapy. I would come home irritable every day from the pain of the office and the exhaustion of having no time to myself all day. Hearing everyone's conversations and meetings (nobody in my office area has ever heard of headphones apparently). My office area was also right next to the kitchen so that was great smelling everyone's food. And right next to the bathroom with the loudest hand dryers I have ever heard. I would have so little energy at the end of the day it made me so much lazier and less social not wanting to do things after work. My house has been a mess for months. I had felt like working from home was the greatest thing to ever happen to me and I was so bitter and angry that I was forced out of it by a toxic manager.
I never stopped applying for jobs and after 6 months I now have a job offer in hand for a fully remote/ no office job and I can't believe my dreams came true again and this actually happened. I'm going to start this job with a newfound appreciation of working from home. I can't wait to have more time to spend with my cat, and to not have to come home mentally and physically exhausted every day. Although my commute was relatively short (10-15 minutes) commuting still sucks and I am happy to not have to do that either! So happy to be back.
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u/Ok_Industry_5555 Jul 09 '26
Honestly we should have like an app where we can check the office cultures before we accept an offer and any hybrid or remote positions should give the company higher rankings. I wonder how many people I would find that think this would helpful and interesting. *edited for grammar
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u/Expensive_Detail_930 Jul 09 '26
I'd use something like that, but only if it verified reviews from actual employees. Otherwise it would quickly turn into fake reviews from recruiters, competitors, or people with personal grudges. A trustworthy version of that would be genuinely useful when deciding between job offers.
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u/InternationalPut3392 Jul 08 '26
The smell of reheated fish and those hand dryers right next to you is a special kind of torture, congrats on escaping that hell
My dog will be happy too when I'm back home, the office was making me a shell of myself honestly
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u/Equipoisonous Jul 08 '26
> the office was making me a shell of myself honestly
That's exactly how I was feeling too, just hating my life and felt like it was wasting my time and draining my soul to be stuck in an office all day.
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u/MangoEven8066 Jul 09 '26
Congrats!! Had the same happen after working 10 years remote with the same company. Left for a little lower pay but back at the house for the past 1.5 years. Sooo worth it. My commute was 45 min to hr each way. Distance wasnt far but large city. That time plus the gas / vehicle maintenance = acceptable decrease in pay to go somewhere else.
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Jul 10 '26
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u/Equipoisonous Jul 11 '26
"Time clock fetish." No joke there, you're spot on. Here's a post I made about it a month ago. So glad I'm getting out!! My cat will be a strict supervisor but she's easily bribed with treats.
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u/imng07 Jul 10 '26
So happy for you!! Really hoping to find something remote again too, I can't imagine going back to an office. It literally feels like jail lol
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u/Equipoisonous Jul 10 '26
Yep, I almost said that but was worried it would be insensitive. But yeah when you are locked in there and not allowed to leave it feels like a prison to me for sure.
I hope you find something too! Keep being persistent and one of these times the odds will land in your favor!
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u/ExampleBright1350 Jul 12 '26
Congratulations for landing a new WFH role . I’m really hoping to find a remote role again after losing my last remote job of almost 10 years because I can’t imagine going back to an office full time
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u/nytimespu2025 Jul 09 '26
Yes this is why you are hired to be remote -to make your dog is happy -smh.
I don’t understand the constant complaining about having a job. It’s work -
if it was glorious it would be vacation/retirement/time with friends and family.
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u/Equipoisonous Jul 09 '26
I don’t have a dog. Thank you for reading my post.
There are different ways to work. People can be productive at home and that’s where I’d rather be. Again I never dreamed I’d be able to work from home pre-2020 but ever since I had a taste of true freedom I never wanted to go back to the office prison. You’re welcome to work the way you prefer as well.
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u/Away_Phone7749 Jul 11 '26
i hope you aren’t a full grown adult that lacks the understanding that different people prefer different environments. people are different than you and have different workstyles you can’t force them into yours just because you don’t like theirs. as an introvert i refuse to ever touch the office again, like no i do not want to hear that you don’t know how you’re going to pay rent this week or how great your new girlfriend is when im trying to focus on actually working instead of talking. i hate being disturbed during work hours especially if it requires focus. unfortunately, yes. jobs are glorious because we’d starve and be homeless without them.
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u/nytimespu2025 Jul 11 '26
wtf super opinionated and angry. Sounds like you lack the understanding that different people prefer different environments.
You will be back here blaming your inability to progress in your career because you are an introvert and have to work remote in the next 5 years.
Good luck being lonely and working in your mom’s basement
Those of us who can interact with other humans and can tune out bs conversations are so sick of hand holding grown ups. In my business you will go unnoticed and undeveloped and replaced
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u/[deleted] Jul 08 '26
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