psychology

Work From Home: Different Experiences

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(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

I know. I keep thinking “hey, I’m about done with this,” then some new wrinkle shows up and next thing you know, blog post. I also like it as some of my career advice has aged out, but this is relevant and fresh and helpful.

I was chatting with some friends about our different experiences in Work From Home (WFH) and then something struck me. As much as many of us are WFH, as many of us have done WFH . . . we’re often forgetting just how diverse people’s experiences are.

One friend of mine has done it for two decades. Another had remappable experiences. I had done it on and off for two decades and had participated in WFH experiments. It was interesting comparing notes.

It also struck me that as WFH becomes more normalized we’re going to need to keep this in mind to adjust.

As we move to WFH we have to appreciate our experiences are different than other peoples. There are things we know and things we don’t know. Things we can handle and things we can’t. Any move to WFH is going to require people to cultivate some personal awareness so we can develop, learn, and unlearn.

Also we’ll have to be aware that others have different experiences than us when it comes to WFH. We may find someone who know more and we should listen. Others may need psychological tips from us to navigate unknown waters. We’re going to need empathy and humility.

Some of our co-workers won’t have the above knowledges or sensitivities, and we’ll have to educate them. Hopefully we can do so either formally or appropriately, but I’m sure there’s already been plenty of WFH-based temper flareups. These will keep occurring.

Finally, this giant science/business experiment is happening during a pandemic. We’ll have to relearn and reapply our lessons all over again when things calm down (which is probably 9-12 month at my guess).

I’m terribly concerned right now that the continuing WFH that’s going on hasn’t had enough` effort by people to assess different experiences. I mean it’s sort of understandable – we got thrown into this fast – but that still means there’s a problem.

This is something I also need to sit with myself. I don’t think I fully assessed the different experiences and challenges people have faced. I need to understand my friends, family, and co-workers a bit better.

So for now?

  1. Realize your WFH experiences aren’t others.
  2. See who you can learn from regarding WFH.
  3. See what you can teach about WFH.
  4. Have empathy for people who are adjusting to WFH.
  5. Be ready to have to face changes to WFH because of how we did this.

Steven Savage

Steve’s Work From Home Findings: The Dam Bursts

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(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

I’ve been writing about Work From Home (WFH) a lot lately. You see a post here a week as I discuss my thoughts and findings. But it’s not just here I’m talking about it.

It’s a subject at work because, you know, pandemic.

It’s a subject among friends, as we’re almost all working from home.

It’s a subject at home as my girlfriend is dealing with it too.

And I realized I, the geek job guru, the WFH advocate, am tired of talking about working from home. It’s all over, it’s everywhere, it’s exhausting. So why am I not thrilled we’re discussing it?

We first of all, there’s the entire damn pandemic. It’s a pretty awful time to discuss it, as well as all the other awful stuff in the world.

But I realized it’s because it’s like a damn bursting, it’s an overload. Suddenly, because of the pandemic, we’re having to cope with WFH fast.

So now suddenly all our years of theories and ideas and experience are compressed into less than a year.

So now all of our repressed desires to discuss it erupt out.

So now we’ve got to adapt so fast and so quickly it’s hard.

The dam has burst. Years of tweaking WFH, or maybe talking about it, of doing a little bit weren’t enough. So here we are in a disaster we could be ready for, adapting fast, applying lessons from decades in a year, and going “I told you so” a lot.

There’s a lesson in this.

Look, by my best estimates we’re stuck doing this until March 2021, probably July. We’re then going to deal with a world post-pandemic, with vaccines and new protocols and the like. We’re going to be worn and tired.

In this time, its important we apply these lessons, but also to go easy on ourselves. Because this is not just a hard time, we’re overwhelmed with all the stuff we have to do for WFH, and we’re tired.

So apply the lessons, but apply the vital ones first.

Use the techniques we have, but don’t beat yourself up over doing them perfectly.

Move to WFH, but understand people can’t do everything and times are tough, and it’s not perfect.

Finally, accept that during a freaking pandemic none of us are at 100%. Hell, some of us are operating at 120% and we’d like to slow down.

The dam burst. All our ideas and maybes about WFH exploded into life fast because we had to use them, during a disaster. Go easy on yourself and on everyone.

It’s not like we’re going anywhere, sadly.

Steven Savage

Your Creative Contribution

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(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com and Steve’s Tumblr.  Find out more at my newsletter.)

Those of us who want to create want to have an effect. We want to reach people, inspire people shock people, to somehow change people. We’re catalysts, producing change (and perhaps being changed by the interaction).

But we must also remember that we creatives have different effects. This is important as we can become obsessed with having one kind of effect, and forget the many others. If we focus on having a specific type of effect, we loose our chance to be much more, or be who we are.

Think of all the different ways you can effect people with our creativity. Imagine life as a building – where does your creativity come in?

We can be foundations. Our creativity can provide people something to build on in the world, giving them something solid on which to make more. We’ve all read that good novel that made us go “yes, and now.” We’ve all seen that documentary that said “I get it, and now see where to go next.” You can be that solidity that lets others grow.

We can be pillars. We can create that work that is seminal, that people refer to for years, decades, or centuries. We can stand as an example people rally around. This may seem challenging, but if you’re a specialist in your area, no matter how minor, you may be a pillar. That novel you wrote that is very specific may truly be the best of its kinds for a hundred years.

We can be the roof. Our work my be that which protects people, creative stories that heal the soul or provide comfort. It is these works that restore and heal, that shield the mind against despair and hopelessness.

We can be the alchemy. Our works can interact with the creativity of others, to simulate them into thinking and growing. Your story, your advice book may explore and challenge ideas, and thus lead others to think deeper. Such works inspire new ones, and create even stronger creative results.

We can be the decorations. A light and frivolous film is fun, and fun is important to cheer us and to inspire us and relax us. We may create something that is inspiringly artistic, a monument to what can be done. We can enhance the experience of others, such as when a story explores common tropes in a new way.

Your creative results may be one of these – or perhaps one I haven’t come up with in these simple metaphors. You may aim to achieve a specific kind of creative result, which is laudable. Focus is important for success.

But keep in mind that your creative path may lead you to other areas. The epic novel you write to stand the test of time may turn out to be more comforting to others, and that is still an achievement. The light short story we created can turn out to be timeless, a pillar which rallies others. Be open to your creative work having different results than intended.

But as always, keep creating and keep seeking the best results for others.

Steven Savage