I really hesitate to share pictures like this because I don't want to contribute to the false narrative that remote work equates to laptop-toting backpackers on beaches snapping āworkā pics for Instagram. But there's another stigma we need to debunk, which overrides my caution...
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āLeadersā who claim you need an office to be productive, create company culture, and have a fulfilling social life are building for the past 100 years, not the coming 5-10 years. Knowledge workers no longer need to commute to a random building to sit in conference rooms or cluster together in uninspiring cubes to do work that can literally be done from anywhere in the world.
Written this way, from the vantage point of what we know weāre capable of, it actually sounds completely ridiculous to continue working that way.Ā
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This week I worked from my campervan in a tiny rural village in the middle of the Italian Dolomites. I held meetings with people on multiple continents, collaborated with my teammates in 30+ countries, wrote a Forbes article, created documentation, finalized budgets, and coordinated the details for our company retreat. Productivity and creativity were not a problem, I can assure you.
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I also spent extra quality time with my family (see Koda, pictured bottom left, always observing š¶) and interacted with other like-minded people who share similar interests in travel and the outdoors. My days started with a hike or a paddleboarding session on the nearby lake and ended with personal calls to coworkers, friends, and family. My social/wellness ācupā was plenty full, despite lacking an office. Shocking, I know.Ā
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My typical day is far from a photo-op. I'm usually sitting at the same dedicated desk in my co-working space, so this pic is not necessarily the future of work we're trying to build. But if I can be productive, fulfilled, and connected to my teammates while working from this mobile office, tethered to a hot spot in the middle of the Alps, I'm pretty sure your team is plenty capable of doing the same from the comfort of their own home or a local cafe. To say otherwise is, again, ridiculous.
Ā
So, for those leaders out there claiming the office is where we create, connect, and produce - please adapt, ASAP. People want freedom and flexibility to choose where they live and work. They want to create their own schedule and get out of the rat race we initiated during the industrial revolution. They want you to build a culture designed to succeed because of the autonomy you grant them, not in spite of it.
Do that, and you will thrive. Otherwise, someone else will and you'll be left behind. It really is that simple.
Ā
Ok thatās all for today š Happy Friday, friends - have a great weekend ahead!
Ā
āLeadersā who claim you need an office to be productive, create company culture, and have a fulfilling social life are building for the past 100 years, not the coming 5-10 years. Knowledge workers no longer need to commute to a random building to sit in conference rooms or cluster together in uninspiring cubes to do work that can literally be done from anywhere in the world.
Written this way, from the vantage point of what we know weāre capable of, it actually sounds completely ridiculous to continue working that way.Ā
Ā
This week I worked from my campervan in a tiny rural village in the middle of the Italian Dolomites. I held meetings with people on multiple continents, collaborated with my teammates in 30+ countries, wrote a Forbes article, created documentation, finalized budgets, and coordinated the details for our company retreat. Productivity and creativity were not a problem, I can assure you.
Ā
I also spent extra quality time with my family (see Koda, pictured bottom left, always observing š¶) and interacted with other like-minded people who share similar interests in travel and the outdoors. My days started with a hike or a paddleboarding session on the nearby lake and ended with personal calls to coworkers, friends, and family. My social/wellness ācupā was plenty full, despite lacking an office. Shocking, I know.Ā
Ā
My typical day is far from a photo-op. I'm usually sitting at the same dedicated desk in my co-working space, so this pic is not necessarily the future of work we're trying to build. But if I can be productive, fulfilled, and connected to my teammates while working from this mobile office, tethered to a hot spot in the middle of the Alps, I'm pretty sure your team is plenty capable of doing the same from the comfort of their own home or a local cafe. To say otherwise is, again, ridiculous.
Ā
So, for those leaders out there claiming the office is where we create, connect, and produce - please adapt, ASAP. People want freedom and flexibility to choose where they live and work. They want to create their own schedule and get out of the rat race we initiated during the industrial revolution. They want you to build a culture designed to succeed because of the autonomy you grant them, not in spite of it.
Do that, and you will thrive. Otherwise, someone else will and you'll be left behind. It really is that simple.
Ā
Ok thatās all for today š Happy Friday, friends - have a great weekend ahead!
