There’s something uniquely Australian about trying to finish a report while watching the ocean through a holiday rental window. January arrives, half the country disappears, and suddenly, “working from home” becomes “working wherever Wi-Fi sort of works”.

When you’re remote and over the summer, every signal counts.Credit: iStock

But the problem isn’t Wi-Fi or even “working wherever”. It’s the underestimation of the damage that softened boundaries can do to our reputation and career.

Here are some summer-specific WFH behaviours that might seem harmless in the moment but can severely damage careers:

1. The slow replies. Summer signals a general slowdown. And it’s difficult to go against the grain when the world and your family are on a different treadmill. Leisurely mornings, relaxed days and an all-round chill out.

Not if you are working, though. Your mind can’t be slow, and certainly not your emails or your responses. “I’ll get to it after a swim” becomes “later this afternoon”, which turns into tomorrow, and it all seemed reasonable at the time.

The reputation damage isn’t in the delay alone; it’s the unpredictability. When your communication becomes erratic, your reliability becomes questionable, even if your work is totally fine.

WFH is one of the great freedoms of modern work. Treat it like a privilege, not a loophole.

Referred to as availability bias, where your managers may remember your recent behaviour, not your November excellence.

2. The elastic workday. WFH in summer is an experiment........

© The Sydney Morning Herald