Shaping the Future of Work

This week, YuLife celebrated an anniversary. On first thought, it wasn’t the most positive of occasions - ‘1 year since we closed our office due to the pandemic’ doesn’t exactly have the most upbeat ring to it. But thinking more deeply, it offers the chance to reflect upon just how far we’ve come in that time, and to consider what the future of the workplace will hold.

What will our workplaces look like? What do we want from them? What do we visualise? Our most recent YouGov survey is really illuminating in this regard. We interviewed over 1000 people and the results provide a very interesting snapshot of where we are now, as well as what people are expecting going forward.

One thing in particular that stood out to me was regarding breaks - 22% of employees are currently not taking a break at all. 46% say their employer isn’t encouraging them to take one. It’s no secret how important it is to take some time out of your day away from work, whether that’s to exercise, to meditate or to simply get some fresh air. The unfortunate reality is that the pandemic has created poor working habits. 42% of respondents said that they feel more stressed now than they did before Coronavirus.

With these things considered, It’s no surprise that people have begun to realise, if they didn’t know already, just how important their own wellbeing is. 68% of employees said that they are now planning healthier habits for once lockdown restrictions loosen. Over 90% of employees also say that they expect their employers to do much more for their wellbeing going forward. These figures are the most important for me because they focus on the future. That’s where we’re headed; towards the light which we now have at the end of the tunnel.

With a focus on the future, It’s worth asking ourselves: ‘what type of workplace do we want to be in?’ I want to pick out 3 of the YuLife values which I believe are so important in shaping the future of the workplace.

1. ‘Leading with compassion’. It’s so important as leaders to look at the workplace through a new lens; to create workplaces where people can flourish, where people are encouraged to take breaks and to simply be themselves. In the new world we’re entering, we cannot lead with a harshness and only be driven by results. We must come from a place of compassion, and bring heart.
2. ‘Being present’. How can we give people the tools to live and work purely in the moment? We don’t need to be constantly thinking about the future and worrying about the next thing. If the future of work can encourage, empower and reward employees for enjoying the moment, we will see a culture shift.
3. ‘Build the world that we want to live in’. The same goes for the workplace. What type of environment do we want to spend our time in? People often talk about ‘work-life balance’, but it’s an expression I’ve never really understood, because it equates ‘work’ to something that is negative and is the opposite of ‘life’, when in reality it doesn’t have to be. We can thrive and achieve great things through the workplace. It’s something that is purpose driven; a way of actualising our full potential. That’s the future of work.

While the last year has obviously been extremely challenging for people, I am optimistic. Looking at the survey, I consider where we are and how far we’ve come in the last 12 months and I am certain that we are learning lessons. If we can take what has been a difficult situation and extract learnings to help create a better future, that is a huge positive to me.

Often, people talk about how they can’t wait to go back to how things were before. But in my mind, we don’t want to go back. We have an opportunity to shape the future: a better future, which we can achieve together.