No more home-working humbug - I'm going in.

I’ve always been a humbug about going into the office. The very thought of a commute exhausting.

Take train travel for starters. I may or may not get a seat where I can attempt (invariably futilely) to connect to the WIFI and catch-up on whatever work I’ve missed in the ten hours since I last checked my emails. I sit and listen to people around me typing away furiously at 6.30am in the morning and find myself in awe of their pre-dawn energy. And presumably their success at having made contact with the elusive network I’ve failed to find.

Of course there’s always the car. A mode of transport that brings with it autonomy, and while work is currently impossible in transit (until driverless cars whisk us up our motorways while we connect to our in-vehicle WIFI and catch-up on the emails that came in during those precious ten hours when we weren’t working). Until that day it’s just me, The Today Programme and – unless I get going before 5am – a long sojourn in stationary traffic until it’s time to find an astronomically expensive parking space. Needle in haystacksville.

I finally make it in. And no one else does. Did I miss the memo? Either way, the office is deserted. It's one of those days where if I stay still for long enough all the lights turn off and I'm left in the dark. Do I a). Stay. b). Go. c) Put my head slowly down on the desk, sigh quietly at the hours I’ve wasted and wish I was anywhere else.

N.B. This is a significant generalisation with no small smattering of hyperbole in the interests of juxtaposing the sentiment I’ll share in next bit. That said, I’ll crack on.

So good so humbug.

And so it was with a weary head and heart I struggled up to London last week at the crack of dawn. I knew I was in for an intense, high pressure day and decided to offset my grumpiness by disguising it in a swathe of pink wool coat, hoping a bright outer shell would help quash my salty inner crab. There’s a fantastic coffee shop just round the corner from our new office in Paddington, so I headed there first and handed over my (matching pink) reusable cup). “Not looking forward to today.” I muttered to the chirpy barista. “Aw come on!” He smiled back. “Dressed like that it’s going to be a GREAT day.” Mollified, I toddled on, Americano in paw.

Our Paddington office is new and wonderful. Because it’s new and wonderful everyone wants to be there. So on this particular day, the tumbleweed, lights-turning-off-when-I-don’t-move scenario was not a thing. It was buzzing. An atmosphere of energy and positivity infused every floor. Alas it also meant that there were no desks. My mood soured again. Knew coming up would be a nightmare…Humbug.

There was only one thing for it. The library. My worst place to work because you have to be quiet. I sat down miserably and started to retrieve a plethora of wires, chargers, laptop, spectacles, mouse etc. out of my Tardis-like backpack.

The girl next to me turned to her colleague on the other side and started chatting. Controversial. My ears pricked up. A few minutes later a teammate entered the room, smiled her usual beaming smile and said ‘hi.’ She sat down and also started unpacking. As she did, the conversation in the room turned to whether it was OK to talk in the library if everyone was OK with it and we didn’t go overboard. The consensus was that it was.

Elevenses and I went out to the kitchen to make a coffee. “Lou!” Yelled a voice from across the room. “I can’t believe it’s you!” A teammate from my old role at VMO2 last year who I hadn’t seen for months came over. “I’ve been meaning to reach out. Only last night I said, I must message Lou. And then here you are!” I felt the same and we spent a happy half-hour catching up on all our news and promising to get together again next time we were in Paddington.

I went back to the library buzzing.

I'd convinced myself my day was going to be super stressful. I had a critical meeting to prep for at the very end of the day – my worst time, when my energy is at its lowest. I already had several late nights under my belt trying to get my proposal just right. If I’d stayed at home I would have been alone all day, probably working myself up into a total stew. But sitting with others in a warm, supportive atmosphere where there was a quiet respect for creating space to work, while also making time to have conversations without disturbing anyone, made the day fly by and my anxiety dissipated (almost) entirely.

When I got to my meeting, I may have been tired but I felt fully prepared and confident. My stakeholders bought into the proposal and eventually I went home on a high.

That day I made three new friends and connected with colleagues I don’t see often enough. We talked about our children, gym resolutions for the new year, TV programmes, work worries. I unburdened myself about how nervous I was about my son’s driving test the next day, and my older son going travelling for seven months this week. Logging on from home the next day I felt lighter. More connected. I reached out to one of my new friends to let them know that James passed his test, he sent back a heartfelt and much appreciated congratulations which lifted my morning.

A problem shared is a problem halved they say.

Going into the office and sitting with other people helped me dial down my worries and focus on what I needed to deliver. I didn’t even notice until I took this time to reflect, how much I’d valued the change of scene and company.

I’ve always been a total humbug about going into work. “There has to be a purpose.” I’ve said, on more than one occasion: like an All Hands or a workshop or a meeting. Something ‘big.’

I was wrong.

I realise now that, for me, the main purpose for going into the office is a simple one. WIFI issues, busy trains and traffic jams aside, it's worth it because I spend time with the people I work with. And that's more than enough.

#storytelling #culture #communication #employeeengagement #writing #thankyou #officework #office #team #WFH #hybridwork

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Louisa Houghton is a storyteller and employee engagement specialist. She's also many other things, including bee keeper, guitar player and German Shepherd despairer (if that wasn't a thing, it is now). Louisa is all about keeping it real, dispensing with the fluff and having some fun. She is a firm believer in the extraordinary everywhere. Magic can always be found if you look for it.

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