There is currently a recurring debate about what's preferable between the conventional 9-5 office work and the trending remote work-from-home sorta jobs. This won't be a complementary post to that debate. Instead, what I want to achieve here is to share my thoughts and experience on remote working as it relates to me and the stuff I do at the moment. The focus is also on remote workers who earn in Crypto.
This is a really good time to talk about this because those of us who work online in this part of the world and make our money in Crypto are currently under attack from the government. This isn't new though. Nigeria hasn't been very receptive to Cryptocurrency. Since I work remotely and earn in Crypto, I've had to be very careful of where I go and how I spread the word about the things I do.
I've seen a lot of remote workers get tagged as Internet fraudsters by our Police who know nothing about working remotely. You would think taking a moment to explain that you are doing something legitimate would help. However, that's usually a waste of time. I say that from experience. If I'm traveling and my gadgets get run through by our Police, if they see any crypto in my holding which I earned by doing the stuff I do online, I will get into a lot of trouble for that.
In addition to all that, just yesterday, the option to exchange USDT for Fiat was taken off some Crypto Exchanges. Binance, for example. This means we have to improvise and look for other comparatively secure alternatives that can be used to make our transactions. You see? If I'm working remotely and earning in Cryptocurrency, it leaves me with a lot of trouble. However, a lot of us are still doing it.
The big question is; Why are we still exploring these sorta remote works? Why not just settle for 9-5 and earn sweet Naira?
About 9-5 office works and the whole "it's an opportunity to meaningfully connect with people" selling point which is used to make it look appealing for some folks, I always say it's hard to enjoy working in that space in a country like ours where our minimum wage is ridiculously pathetic in comparison to the cost of living.
Connecting with people? I do that pretty well even if the connection is on screen. Also, if I'm so interested in physical interaction, working remotely means I can work from anywhere and at any time. That makes it easy for me to adjust my time in a way that makes it easier to physically connect with people at any point in my day.
On the financial front, nothing beats working remotely and earning in a stronger currency, especially when you earn in crypto which gives you leverage against the recurring inflationary pressure. You still end up spending as much as every other person in the country. However, whatever you earn in Crypto gives your earnings a push when you convert that to your local currency.
For me, remote working has made it easier for me to also connect with a lot of people outside my geographical area. This is one of the best parts of working remotely that I've been enjoying. I don't think I will consider doing 9-5 again in Nigeria. I hope circumstances never force my hands to do that.
Thanks For Not Missing Any Full-stop or Comma.
Thumbnail Image is taken from Unsplash
Additional Image is also taken from Unsplash