Is Working From Home a Right?

Bear with me…

I want to share some practical ideas, based on my experience, learned from my mentors, and practiced by myself… I’d like you to consider these as you think about your work environment, and the basic question of “is working from home or remote a right, a privilege, or an accommodation?”. And if you decide to return to some hybrid form of work, how do you make the experience one that you’ll value and look forward to??

My readers know my view. Every employee and employer is bound by an essential and primal contract—even if unwritten—to create a healthy environment where both employee and employer can achieve successful outcomes … a contract embedded firmly upon a foundation of Accountability and Authority:

1. ACCOUNTABILITY — what we owe our employer…every employee is accountable for their actions, behaviors, and work ethic… Not responsible (we get paid for that), but accountable. We don’t point fingers when the shit hits the fan…and it always does. We never pass the buck. We invest extra time and effort to make our work excellent, not just satisfactory. And, yes, we are always on if necessary.
2. AUTHORITY — what our employer owes us…because here is the big caveat…and the business exchange…I can’t be held accountable unless I have the authority to do my job correctly. If they hold me accountable and keep all the authority, they are power-tripping and orchestrating finger-pointing situations. We can only be the target of blame when we’re given the autonomy to actually assume the very responsibility our employers expect of us—and that we should expect of ourselves.

Consider:

If you don’t have this basic commitment, no matter where you are working from, you are vulnerable and will never really grow. Credit will pass you by, blame will stick to you, and toxicity will be the order of the day.?

Examine your relationship with work. See where you land and adjust…fix or leave. But try fixing first … the Great Resignation they’re calling it … don’t fall prey to the allure of quitting when things get difficult. Make the effort to make a difference.?

Second point:

Work/Life balance has always been a big topic. It’s always been an issue. Do you advance further and faster if you lock your personal life away? Must you eat, sleep, and breathe work to get ahead? If you value your family and friends, are you a lightweight??

Consider:?

Here is what I learned…A practical lesson taught to me by my wife and validated by my daughters when my work life seemed all-consuming, including non-stop travel all over the world…?

The deal that was proposed to me was simple: when I was home, I needed to be home 100% and in the game. When I was at work, I needed to be the same. Clearly, there were times when I had to compromise, but it worked because in general, my 100% was in balance. Recently, my daughters, now with their own children, made my day/life…they told me that it worked.

Here is my point: If you spend your life trying to balance percentages, you will fail. 100% full in…whatever you do…a kind of ACCOUNTABILITY too.

Third point:

Be honest. Please. Of course, it’s fun to work at home, remotely, from the park, or Starbucks, or wherever. And if you don’t have kids or dependents living with you, there are few distractions. But...it does get lonely. ZOOM does not replace being with your team…at least occasionally…and be honest about productivity, of course you are more productive…It’s quiet (caveats aside), you can focus (sometimes), and no one is disturbing your pursuit of completion…BUT COME ON, it’s easy to wander…it’s easy to get distracted…it’s still easy to lose concentration.

Sometimes … and here’s the scary thing … it’s easier to get lost when you’re alone.

Consider:

Be the force behind hybrid workstreams. Be the catalyst to get people back to face to face. Be the person to make it work (see 100% above). Find a way to bring the team together and experiment with new models. Don’t be the one that feels that it’s your right to stay away…be the driver to prove that alone is just not as fun, productive, or frankly as big a learning and personal advancement opportunity as hanging out.?

Final thought:

The faults in today’s work system have been exposed. By that I mean we stay away, because we can, and many want to stay away because the workplace sucks. Politics; lack of diversity/advancement; poor design; bad managers; lack of leadership; poor pay; bad bonuses…lots of Grin F’ING…you know, smiling and nodding to your requests, but no one really listens.?

Consider:?

1. Be the assassin of politics. Kill it. Don’t allow it to flourish. Make it clear it has no place on your team and beyond. Think before you share. No more BCC and its various equivalents in all forms of communications…no use of Slack and its lookalikes to take people down…damn with faint praise or exercising what you think is a right to say anything you wish anytime you wish.?
2. Understand what diversity really is. It’s complex. There is no one fix. Don’t point to gender or color and start counting. You know when your team is diverse…charts and graphs prove nothing. And remember, it’s inclusion in authority, and equity in decision that makes it all real. Like I said…you know when it is diverse…Be the person who drives real.
3. Many of us have spent two years in bedrooms; small makeshift offices; kitchens; backyards…anywhere we could find a space. It was fun at first…boring by the end. And yes, the more well-off could rent an extra apartment or room somewhere. Yet, those places were ours. Why would I return to a cold, hot-desked environment where every day I would have to find a new place to sit, and there is nothing personal or warm to make me feel at home? I might as well go back to my attic or Starbucks. I also find it absurd that companies who preach personalization in the digital age dehumanize their own workplace…think on that! Demand a personalized workspace. Make the office yours and make your space yours. Making your office feel like the place you want to be…where your new way of working is supported, making it easier for you to come in and be productive. But it’s yours.
4. Managers are not leaders by default. They are squares in an Org chart. Leadership needs to pay more attention to the bad ones and take action. People! Speak out and demand action when confronted by the trolls. The companies whose boards I am on, I am proud to say, take this seriously and review people on a regular basis and make it clear that bad behavior will not be tolerated. Org chart power-tripping needs to go.
5. Lack of leadership is a plague. If your company stifles or otherwise doesn’t provide opportunities for leaders to flourish, leave…find a company where they do value them. Where you can become a leader if you’ve got what it takes. Stay and you will wilt…miserably.
6. “Wait…don’t resign…I was just on my way to tell you about your raise.”? OY!! I have heard that kind of phrase played out way too many times. If your company doesn’t pay well, meaning a fair wage for the work you do, find one that does. Honestly? I have never quit a job to get more money elsewhere…in fact, I have moved for less because I thought I’d learn more and have more future opportunity. But if you are getting screwed, get out. Now is the time.
7. Same issue with bonuses. Be honest. If you deserve one, demand one. If some are taking for themselves and not sharing (seen that before), it’s also time to leave…that never changes.
8. And finally…the GRIN F’CK…how I hate one. Sometimes you just have to be the bigger person and grin back and bear it…delivering all the while. But sometimes, you can give it back…childish…immature…but satisfying.

Bottom line, it’s easy to feel a God-given right never to return to an office…but you will lose out on learning, fun, relationships, experiences, and in my view—yes, it’s not fair—but opportunity as well.?

But it’s really a God-given right to fight back and take the beach…be Accountable with Authority…shape your work life…improve your personal one…have fun, and most importantly, have impact.

TAKE CONTROL. Be a leader. Change the world.?

What’s your view??