This is a story about why remote work matters.
It’s 3am on a Wednesday morning. I sit in a hospital ER room, my husband lying in the bed across from me. A team of doctors has come and gone, a CT scan has been done, the decision has been made to admit him for further neurological testing. I am scared and exhausted. And the last thing on my mind is work.
That was more than two weeks ago. Since then, my husband spent 16 days in the hospital, a week of it in ICU, underwent countless tests, and ultimately had to have brain surgery to correct an issue that he was most likely born with and finally manifested through a series of alarming symptoms that finally resulted in his early morning trip to the ER.
It felt like everything stopped - LinkedIn posts went silent, Teams pings stopped, constant email checking ceased, meetings got rescheduled or canceled. But do you know what didn’t stop? The work. My remote team was with me every step of the way. Between taking time off, to working a flexible schedule, to having to cancel meetings last minute because the neurosurgeon finally popped in for a chat, my team kept the momentum and our projects going.
A remote work culture cultivates:Â
- Flexibility to prioritize - every part of your life.
- Teams that step up and lean in to support each other.
- A framework and best practices for communicating across spaces, time zones, and life events.
- Ownership of projects across teams that fosters accountability and professional growth.
- People-centered environments when we can be more than our work.
These are some of the many reasons why remote work matters. While I’m back in action and finally caught up, the gratitude I feel for the flexibility and grace that remote work affords is something I never take for granted.
How would a remote work culture support you?
It’s 3am on a Wednesday morning. I sit in a hospital ER room, my husband lying in the bed across from me. A team of doctors has come and gone, a CT scan has been done, the decision has been made to admit him for further neurological testing. I am scared and exhausted. And the last thing on my mind is work.
That was more than two weeks ago. Since then, my husband spent 16 days in the hospital, a week of it in ICU, underwent countless tests, and ultimately had to have brain surgery to correct an issue that he was most likely born with and finally manifested through a series of alarming symptoms that finally resulted in his early morning trip to the ER.
It felt like everything stopped - LinkedIn posts went silent, Teams pings stopped, constant email checking ceased, meetings got rescheduled or canceled. But do you know what didn’t stop? The work. My remote team was with me every step of the way. Between taking time off, to working a flexible schedule, to having to cancel meetings last minute because the neurosurgeon finally popped in for a chat, my team kept the momentum and our projects going.
A remote work culture cultivates:Â
- Flexibility to prioritize - every part of your life.
- Teams that step up and lean in to support each other.
- A framework and best practices for communicating across spaces, time zones, and life events.
- Ownership of projects across teams that fosters accountability and professional growth.
- People-centered environments when we can be more than our work.
These are some of the many reasons why remote work matters. While I’m back in action and finally caught up, the gratitude I feel for the flexibility and grace that remote work affords is something I never take for granted.
How would a remote work culture support you?