*sigh*
OK, I caught what was going around. I resisted as long as I could, but I am sick.
I should clarify this, since there’s so many ways to get sick:
- I did not get the flu from what I can tell, but if I did it’s a mild one. I know this as, based on what I’ve heard about the latest flu, I lack the desire to kill myself.
- It does not appear to be the new horror from Australia as I and the toilet are only experiencing a platonic relationship.
- It does resemble a lot of secondary infections I saw people getting – after having the flu.
So I kind of feel lousy, I’m not too productive, and I’m doing only about a half day of work because I want to sleep.
However note that “half day of work.” It’s fantastic I can work at home if needed (which helps in having a cool boss and employer). I dread to think what it’s like in places where people can’t – or won’t – take advantage of this.
Honestly, though I feel work from home has been overrated and overused, it’s also been vastly underused. In short, work-from-home isn’t really being studied or used strategically. Having seen viruses and colds rip through offices like a chainsaw through jello, having had friends with children discover they’ve birthed little plague carriers, I think work-from-home needs to be evaluated seriously.
Not a fad. Not a dodge. Not a reward. A strategy.
We’re still married to the workplace via the shotgun of tradition. Thinking a little differently could help.
If illness hits an area, why not make Work From Home manditory for some so you can avoid spreading disease in the first place?
Have work from home drills to see if people can suddenly shift gears?
Find out who can work from home and try them out. I was once part of a study on this and found that A) I was 16% more productive, and B) I could really only work from home 3 days out of 5.
So let’s consider this.
Now I’m going to go feel miserable. Yet, strangely productive.
Steven Savage is a Geek 2.0 writer, speaker, blogger, and job coach. He blogs on careers at http://www.fantopro.com/, nerd and geek culture at http://www.nerdcaliber.com/, and does a site of creative tools at http://www.seventhsanctum.com/. He can be reached at https://www.stevensavage.com/.