For the last month or so, my social media feeds have been full of the remote vs office debate. Unless you've been hibernating, you'll have seen that this week Amazon announced the 5 day office based week from January 2025. If you already know me, I have issues with Amazon as a company but this announcement is not one of them. Incidentally, it coincides with me starting an office based contract, having not been office based for almost 13 years....
Needless to say, I have taken myself through a process psychologically to get myself to a point where I would be ok with such a change to my portfolio. I recall two conversations a week ago with a friend saying that they would absolutely love to be in an office 5 days a week (i.e. not remote) and another reflecting on their experiences of getting the balance right - maybe we need a blend. But is it that binary.
Here are some of my reflections after Week 1 -
It's possible to ease yourself into it
I had advised that if I am to start now then I wanted to honour the commitments that I already had in the diary - as a result, I've only really done three full office based days this week. Yes, I did feel it when I woke up on Saturday morning and was very grateful for the lie-in.
Takeaway - if you're starting something new, are you willing and able to find a win-win from the offset?
When I finish, I leave the work at the office
Now this I haven't done in years!!! Will this last? Not sure, but having spoken to one of my new counterparts, as well as the person that helped facilitate this opportunity, no-one bothers you after you leave the office.
That is huge in a portfolio career - it helps us compartmentalise and be fully present for other things.
Takeaway - There are trade-offs to working flexibly. We need different things at different points in life
My weight has stabilised
True story! I bought some new scaled a couple of months ago and have started monitoring my weight. This week, after 3 days of a new 'routine' - I've seen a notable consistency in my weight, not a loss, but that the fluctuation has been within a kilo every day and no more.
Takeaway - Getting into a routine, if it is your choice, may help with other things in life.
I'm not saying for one second that this is not going to be a hard adjustment - but I'm going in intentionally and with purpose. Tune in next week for more musings on this debate. Next week, I'll be doing 4 days....
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