Thought-provoking Things Worth Sharing - Issue #74
Last weekend the wife and I had a friend and her daughter visiting us. We love having visitors because, as any proper Southern woman would, my wife loves to be hospitable and spoil the people we love, and also because having visitors gives us an excuse to play tourist across South Louisiana. We are always happy to take folks on swamp tours and walks of the French Quarter in New Orleans and our favorite spots on the LSU campus and introduce them to the finer delicacies of the area.
As I considered the benefits of being a tourist in our area, I also considered the first link in today’s newsletter and the disconnect between managers and workers regarding remote work. I wonder if we shouldn’t spend a day or two out of our routine and review why we do what we do and how it gets done. Maybe let someone show us how they do things and consider whether our way is the “right” way?
For example, I spent six years traveling and working remotely. I enjoyed a lot of things about that lifestyle but knew that being on the road 60-75% of the time was not a long-term solution. I left that behind and spent two years working in an office full-time. That was enough time to realize that working in an office was not for me. I will never willingly take a job that is not 100% remote again. There seem to be a lot of people on both sides of the remote/office debate who have never really considered what it might be like to choose how to work based on the life you want as opposed to what the boss says we must do. (And many bosses do not want to give up the power of telling people what they must do.)
The reality is one or the other might not be your thing. A hybrid approach might be your thing, or maybe, like me, you’re perfectly happy not having ever “met” 90% of the people you work with daily.
Studies will say there is some “best” way, but you are a human being, not a study. The people who work for you are also not a study. Please don’t treat them like one. Figure out what works for them as people.
Careers and the Workplace
Linked - Research: Where Managers and Employees Disagree About Remote Work
They point out a hypothetical situation where the employee looks at their "work" day to include the commute and maybe some other time, but the manager isn't. That's a huge disconnect. Speaking for myself, I will never volunteer to go back to an in-office or even a hybrid position because of how much time you spend going back and forth and the limiting factor of needing to be in that place for the entire time in between. Why? If the work can get done from anywhere, why would we expect anyone to spend so much time going somewhere else every day?
When you want to succeed as a remote worker: 5 tips to shine from your home office - remote teams have to communicate purposefully. Managers should over-communicate with their directs, and remote workers should purposefully communicate what they are doing. I’m glad Kacie included that reminder here.
Need an Answer to Quiet Quitting? Start With Your Culture
This seems self-evident, right?
If employees perceive workplace promises as an illusion, it's only a matter of time before hopeful workers become discouraged. Experiences must follow brand promises.
Oh, and for all the newly laid-off folks who follow me, the unemployment rate gives me hope that most of you will be back working sooner rather than later, but the process might suck. - Job interviews are a nightmare — and only getting worse
Training and Development
Are you Prepared For 100% Turnover?
If you don’t have the money for significant pay raises, don’t offer other growth opportunities, and have a toxic workplace that doesn’t offer the opportunity for folks to have something that looks remotely like work-life balance, you should prepare yourself to replace everyone. Can you really afford to do that?
Quitting is underrated - it is. Humans are so resistant to quitting anything when we absolutely should, much more often than we do, to make room for better and new things.
Please, for the love of god, teach managers and leaders this - Run efficient meetings that don’t suck
Mental Health at Work
Bad Managers Cause Poor Mental Health
If we want a healthier, open, and inclusive workplace, we need to train the people in charge of setting the tone and the culture. All the lunchtime yoga and meditation in the world can't overcome that shortcoming.
But also, for managers, this is important too - 7 Reminders For When Managing Your Team Is Hard While Also Managing Depression And Anxiety
Legal, Privacy, and Security
SEC Sues Law Firm for Refusing to Disclose List of Clients Affected by Cyberattack - An interesting question. Does the SEC’s need to monitor breached corporate information for potential insider trading violations override the firm’s ethical obligations regarding the confidentiality of their client lists and potential client data?
UT Austin’s Ban Of TikTok Is A Dumb Performance That Fixes Nothing - If your true concern is safeguarding student privacy, many other apps should be banned too.
What's Next on the Ban List, Curtains? - Curtains prevent law enforcement from seeing what you are doing in a house/hotel/apartment/office. We can't have that. (Tongue firmly in cheek.)