One school of thought holds that home working can improve work-life balance. I personally totally disagree with this statement and will suggest more practical solutions.
The loss of work-life balance arises not from working far from home but from using technology to work outside of regular working hours and financial pressure. When working from home, people have to use technology devices to keep connected with work and company. Their working hours, however, prolong because of the long working hours, working weekend, and being available outside of working hours to check working mails and messages from their boss. This intensive working schedule would cause a lack of work-life balance, regardless of working from home. In addition, individuals often suffer from financial pressure to make ends meet, especially for those who are the breadwinner of a family. This, subsequently, forces them to work for a long time to create greater productivity to earn more money while at home.
I will suggest more practical solutions to address this issue. Foremost among them is that workers should set boundaries between work and their lives. When they communicate with their colleagues and managers about setting a specific working time and switching off outside of working hours, they will have more time to spend on their personal habits and more time to accompany their loved ones. Besides, it is important for individuals to learn how to manage time. Via calendar and to-do lists, they can know how to prioritize and categorize work and personal activities appropriately.
In conclusion, I contend that working from home is not an effective measure to enhance work-life balance and suggest more practical ones such as setting personalized boundaries and learning time-management skills.