Remote Worker Shares Friday WFH Anxiety—Many Can Relate

Newsweek

7 hours ago

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A woman's lighthearted way of capturing the quiet tension of remote working on Fridays has gone viral, igniting a wave of solidarity among workers who know the feeling all too well.
The clip, which was posted on July 4 by the woman (@celinefoitzik), shows her walking into a room and briefly peeking at her laptop before striding right back out—no messages, no meetings, and seemingly, no need to pretend.
An overlaid text read: "Checking if anyone has messaged me on Slack before I keep getting ready for Friday night," syncing with a trending sound.
Since then, the video has racked up more than 1.5 million views and over 182,000 likes. It has resonated widely with viewers also navigating the nuanced etiquette of remote work. While the tone is comedic, the clip taps into a collective unease: the guilt many feel for stepping away from their screens on a quiet Friday afternoon, even when the workday is winding down.
"Let's be honest, we've all heard of the tricks when it comes to working from home," Advita Patel, founder of the business networking platform CommsRebel, told Newsweek. "From jiggling your mouse to look like you're awake, to setting a Teams status to 'active' before stepping away to do something else, remote workers are trying to navigate productivity guilt in a way that simply didn't exist in office settings."
Comments under the video are filled with viewers sharing their own work from home rituals—checking Slack or Teams one last time before easing into weekend mode—and the subtle anxiety many feel around appearing inactive online or bosses seeing them in their Friday night attire.
"The embarrassment of answering a spontaneous call in full glam on a Friday afternoon," one viewer said.
"Slack anxiety is so real," another added.
"4 p.m. Friday ping is a nuclear bomb," a third viewer shared.
"Even after 5 p.m. I leave Teams on for good vibe," another commented.
The culture of hyper-visibility—being "always on" even when there is no urgent work—has become a common undercurrent in remote environments. For many, this anxiety stems from fear of being perceived as unmotivated or disengaged, Patel said.
"The need to appear 'always on' stems from fear; fear of being judged as lazy, fear of not being committed or fear of missing out on opportunities because you're not visibly 'working.' This kind of presenteeism culture isn't healthy, in person or online," she said.
Instead of reinforcing this mindset, Patel urged leaders to focus on fostering a culture of trust and clear expectations.
"Rather than fixating on whether employees are sat at their desks from 9 to 5, leaders should focus on cultures first," she said. "I don't mean tick box exercises but fostering environments where team members feel included, trusted and part of the bigger picture."
Stock image: A woman joins a video call with other remote workers from home.
Stock image: A woman joins a video call with other remote workers from home.
Getty Images
Newsweek reached out to @celinefoitzik for more information via TikTok.
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