The Work Clinic

Oh, I'm a moofer all right. In fact, I'm "moofing" right now - working from home on my laptop, with my calls redirected to my iPhone. I'm contemplating a walk up to Blackheath to work away the afternoon in a Starbuck's up there. Tomorrow's an in-office meetings and networking day.

There are certain professions that should be moofers. Most journalists certainly should be, for example. Everything they need can be covered by a laptop and a phone - get out there and meet the readers. (I'd say that Mike Butcher of Techcrunch is a good example of a journo moofer. And how about sales people?

The odd bit of moofing can't be too bad. But I do think it has some draw backs. My concern is focus. Can we really give 100% when moofing? There is something very important about being in the office to do our work. I think our emotion is much more enthused, more concentrated and focused.

I also think to myself would I really want my staff talking to customers in the doctors, the post office or the nursery. Erm...No. The agenda for flexibility is a good one, but one that needs to be controlled. Otherwise we may end up with company buildings empty whilst all the staff are out doing the weekly shopping, organising the next holiday and possibly using their new found flexibility to have a secret affair.

I'm a new moofer, having been on a flexible working scheme since October. It's brilliant - I'm so much more productive and I get all my chores done during the week, so I can properly relax at the weekend. I work for a large company, so it's a bit of an experiment for them but it's working really well so far. Every so often, I do have to remind colleagues that out of sight is not out of mind - I'm on email, IM and mobile, so they can always contact me somehow if they need to. I can get email on my phone if I can't get online with my laptop, so I can travel all over the country working uninterrupted.

One thing that I'd say is absolutely crucial is planning your week on a Monday and adjusting if you need to at the start of each day. People do tend to email more than they phone you and if you responded to everything instantly, you'd only ever be reactive and never clear the to do list.

It sounds cliched but I do feel like I have a much better work/life balance now. If I need to work late I have no commute, so as soon as I switch off I'm in home mode. I also make sure I switch the laptop and my phone off in the evenings and at weekends so I'm not tempted to check my email. Moofing makes me a lot more productive, but I won't let it encourage me to overwork. I have a separate study and as soon as the door is shut, that's it, I've officially 'gone home'.

Would someone who worked while exploring the depths of the oceans in a wetsuit be a 'moof diver'?

I used to work for a huge international company that sold moofing technology so moofing was inherent in the working culture. It was the first company I had worked for that had this type of culture and I found it incredibly empowering to be measured on output rather then input. I almost felt self-employed and my motivation for work was stronger as I was in complete control of what I delivered and therefore felt compelled to succeed. I no longer work for the company as I was a contractor which is typical in the IT industry and needed the security of a permanent job to pay the huge mortgage of living in south west london. I have taken the same level of motivation to my new job and even though the company I work for now does not have a moofing culture, I have developed an open relationship with my boss to be measured on output still and this is working well. Even though moofing has plenty of advantages I also feel that it should be equally balanced with time in the office to keep working relationships strong.

I think there's loads of moofers out there already - now somebodies given it a title!
My partner's in IT and could easily work from home without the need to go into the city more than once or twice a week for team meetings.
A certain amount of moofing was allowed - however there's always one that spoils it for all and he was'nt working at home and was not answering mobile or home phone in his moofing hours! So therefor nobody can work from home now, which is most unfortunate and has ruined it for those who studiously work at home as my partner does.
It won't work for everyone, i certainly couldn't - i,m very happy to be distracted and would need the discipline/routine of the office. The question of balance in the workplace gets thrown into the arena? The amount of people on their blackberries,office work,laptops etc on the way to work is dreadful and the boudaries of work, rest and play are barely divided. There's no way of not being at the office and switching off unless you are very self disciplined. Will this not just blur the boundaries further and bring about a need for more training courses for time management and productivity. It will come down to personality types and their roles as to who can and who can't moof in the end!
Could Myers Briggs personality types and testing play a future role in moofing i wonder?!!

Moofing, what a great term! Finally a verb we can associate with technology that is cool.

I am indeed a moofer, and probably spend two days a week moofing and it really contributes to my productivity when I am back in the office.

I have noticed that people have commented on flexible working and the need for it to be controlled.

There is certainly a need to ensure that a balance can be struck between moofing and time in the office. I am new to moofing, the job I am in being my first out of university, therefore it is key to my development that I am spending time in the office developing relationships with my team and others.

There are many advantages to moofing but I can see why some employers would worry about whether their employees were using their moofing time productively and not for example, shopping. However, moofing is all about empowerment and empowering your people to work at their best and by empowering them to do so, you trust that they will be moofing from whatever location they choose.
I have found that the principle behind flexible working and "moofing" are on an employees output and not how much time they are spending working in or out of the office.

As a recent graduate and new into the world of work, flexible working policies and terms such as moofing have allowed a much easier transition between university and the world of work.

If ‘Moof’ stands for ‘mobile out of office’. Shouldn’t it then be Mooo? I can’t talk right now I am on the train, mooing!

I once phoned work to tell them I was going to the doctors. Does that count as moofing? And if I work on the train by reading a book and improving my vocabulary, does that also count as moofing?

And where are the boundaries when moofing, taking your laptop with you to the toilet? The gym?

Seriously though, I would be really annoyed if I was ill and waiting at the doctors and Mr Moof walked in equipped and ready to work. Excuse me while I sneeze into your laptop.

The same can be said of those selfish people who moof by converting their seat on the train into a mini office space. The laptop comes out and dominates the table shared by three other people. He loudly and enthusiastically explains to his colleague how well the meeting went while he stares out the window, through a “Quiet Zone” sticker.

I have a loose acronym for when on the odd Saturday I sit in front of the TV and watch football while drinking a pint, texting a mate the score, and debating the offside rule to the lady in the room. But, because I only use during the weekend, there is no reason why should share it during work time.

In answer to the post above, in terms of boundaries to moofing, surely they would be the same as what they are in your workplace, you wouldn't take your work with you into the toilet at work so why do it whilst your moofing.

Moofing just allows us to work to suit our lifestlye and working needs. It is being given the empowerment to work when, where and how you want which is why so many places are becoming equipped to help with the changing working landscape e.g the train and Starbucks offering wireless access.

Moofing is not suited to everyone and is a personal choice, each person has their own working style.

Loving the debate! Moofing is about all of the things above and it's just a term I'm using to raise awareness of the fact that there are often ways to work smarter rather than harder.

I guess a whole set of new boundaries about when, where and how moofing should happen in social situations - I'm also irritated by people who think the train carriage is their office and everyone else is intruding!

Come and talk more about the issues at http://moof.mobi

Regards,

Mr Moof