Is Your Workplace Your Intellectual Home?
Photo: @senivpetro / Freepik.com
I once had an elderly man ask me in Israel when my husband and I were on our honeymoon if I planned to “work out of the home”. That was 2019. 2020 came and put a new scope on that phrase which now shapes the reality of so many around the world.
Friday afternoon comes and I close my laptop without any sound other than the soft tap of the lid closing. A week of work done and I simply walk out the door and back into the hallway of my home. No more commute, no coworkers asking about weekend plans as there will be none. No ding of the elevator or goodbye other than the ding of a text message reminder of a project to discuss more in detail next week, and to have a great weekend.
Turning our homes into our offices has impacted the employment landscape in what our employers need from us and vice versa. In a time when those who have been fortunate enough to bring their careers into their home, the lines have been blurred between working from home and working at home that it can be difficult to define what it is we are doing.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment rates increased more than three percent from 2019 to 2020 from 3.6% to 6.7%. This illustrates the 5.1 million more people in the United States facing the challenges of unemployment due to the impact of the pandemic in 2020. Now, many companies are hiring in the wake of “The Great Resignation”, also known as the “Big Quit”, in 2021 as many in the United States workforce voluntarily resigned due to the real or perceived lack of workplace protection during the pandemic.
In 2022, the collective “we” are beginning to look beyond what a standard 9-5 work environment can offer us. Instead, new relationships are being built in regards to our careers and the workforce as we determine what we want out of work culture and what we’re not willing to live without. Now, your intellectual home can be wherever you are and whatever you create it to be.
So whether you choose to continue to champion your organization’s mission, follow your passion to a larger market, or create a new digital workforce of your own, establishing your intellectual home could be the most impactful to your overall workplace satisfaction in the long run.
Five Ways To Achieve Your Intellectual Home
Network with Liked-Minded People
Create Your Company Culture
Align Your Mission with Your Company’s Vision (vice versa)
If Needed, Look Elsewhere
Hire People Who Have the Passion and Energy
Despite the recent upheaval, the core values remain true: follow your passion in pursuit of a larger goal you align with. This can be a vision such as making financial coaching more accessible to the wider public or an achievement such as building homes for people in need. Dedicating yourself to a goal that aligns with your personal values (and therefore connecting you with others who share your values) can level up your workplace from a job to a mission that you connect with on a deeper level.
Cheers to the new year and a new step in your career, whatever that might be to you now.