What I Don’t Miss About Commuting to the Office
The commute to the office for most Americans is the worst part of the day. They can spend an eternity commuting to and from work. Most people will either commute by car or some form of public transportation. The average American will spend almost a full work week in traffic, according to a new study by the Texas Transportation Institute. Regardless of the mode of transportation, commuting will take up valuable time that most of us don't have. The level of stress associated with commuting can take its toll on your emotional and physical well being. As estimated 54 percent of American morning commuters experience stress while traveling to work or school, according to WebMD Health News.
My commute to the office has been replaced with my commute to my upstairs home office. I have everything I need to be productive. I have a laptop and two desktop computers, a printer that allows me to fax and scan documents. I rarely need to use the phone to communicate with my boss because all of our conversations take place via e-mail or instant messaging. The meetings that I attend take place on my computer in which I can talk to other faculty members across the country. We can exchange ideas and socialize in real time.
The employees have been replaced with students. Of course I don't supervise students but the majority of my time is spent communicating with students. There are no office disputes that require my immediate attention. Instead of monitoring employee performance, I provide support to help students reach their educational goals. Eventually, this will help them to reach their career goals.
The boss that I had to report to daily has been replaced with a chairperson. I have never met my online boss in person. I refer to my online boss as my cyber boss. In fact, I don't even think of this person in terms of a boss. The difference is that this is a person who helps you to improve your instructional techniques in the classroom. They function like a coach on the sidelines who provides direction and gives you that extra push to help you strive for excellence. The common goal you both share is the success of your students.