I think being able to work from anywhere is actually less liberating, because it means you're always battling internally about whether you should be working or not.
If you love what you do, then you will be thinking about doing it. In fact, the problem is often that you are thinking about it when you are expected to be having fun - because you're out with people.
That's when you know you love your work.
But anyway -- I mean it when I say: people live lives, companies create products. A person can devote only 10-20 hours and still be productive. If you write documentation in a common framework, and you have a common process for everyone, then the developers have an easier time picking up whether others left off, and working together. In a word: better encapsulation. I think Google had this back in the day with their interchangeable desks/developers :P
- Having no money is liberating because otherwise you are always battling internally about whether you should buy something or not
- Being in prison is liberating because otherwise you are always battling internally about what to do with your life