It’s second month of 2023 and finally, i’m back in the office (3 days a week). The remote work experiment is over. Since coming back to the office, I’ve realized a few things that confirmed why working in the office has a few benefits that I think could greatly impact the lives of young professionals in a positive way.
The natural camaraderie. Since the beginning of the pandemic, we’ve not had a lot of information about the long term effects of working from home but since going back into the office, there’s something that I’ve begun to realize. The affinity that I have for my coworkers becomes stronger. I start to care a little more about how their weekends were, what’s the latest with their kids, and what are their upcoming vacation plans are like. Having an interest in someone else other than myself reminds me of what Victor Frankl said, “For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side effect of one's personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one's surrender to a person other than oneself. In sum, care more about others and less about yourself.
Career progression. Scott Galloway the famous NYU Marketing professor constantly raves about why individuals, especially young individuals, should get back into the office. His advice is that people who are in the office are more likely to get more opportunities to show and hone skills and are also more likely to get promoted. There is now a lot of research and evidence to back up his claim. Career success is a function of hard work but it’s also a function of relationships. Relationships, in any capacity form the bedrock of a happy and fulfilling life. Want to progress and have all the accoutrements of success. Invest in your relationships and preferably do it face-to-face.
Mental Health. Humans were made to be social. There’s no getting around that. Studies show that people who often feel isolated or like social pariahs suffer mentally compared to those who feel connected and engaged to their community. Now, this isn’t to say that this is a binary thing but on a scale of probabilities, you’re more likely to feel better mentally when you’re around individuals who you can trust and be somewhat vulnerable with. I’m not here to say that your coworkers are your friends of family but having a good working relationship goes a far way.
The serendipitous nature of life. Every morning I’d pull into work and fist bump the security guard. After a few times, he’d get to know my name and I would get to know his. A connection has been formed. While waiting in the lobby to get on the elevator to the third floor, I ran into two of my SMEs (subject matter experts). Most of my communication with them are usually over email with brief replies of “Looks good” or “Here are a few more comments”. The simple “Hi’s” and “Hello’s” do more than you think. It’s always exciting to see a new face. The normal human reaction is to greet and pursue a conversation and conversations can lead you anywhere. Life is serendipitous, embrace it.
Finally, I may not have convinced anyone about the extols of going into the office but what I would say is that going into the office produces a net benefit for me. Anything that adds to my life, I’d like to keep, and anything that subtracts from my life, well, it has to go.
la vie en rose,
Daviel
Great article. It really helps to be around people.