From ‘work from home’ to ‘living at work’: the new HR trend is here to stay

The work-from-home phenomenon was not as ubiquitous as it is now. Today, corporations across the globe are adapting their policies to address COVID-19-related contingencies. The changes have effectively eliminated the earlier apprehensions around schedules and even productivity.

It has now been four months of lockdowns and restrictions with no respite being offered due to the spread. A standard working day now entails remote operations snowed under video conferences, online interactions, daily reports and attempts to strike a work-life balance. Working professionals are holed up in their homes, yearning for social interactions beyond their everyday digital routine.

Making the most of new opportunities

Millions of professionals are dealing with this unique situation wherein the lines have blurred between ‘work’ and ‘home’. However, not everything about this ‘new normal’ should be viewed in a negative context. Some changes are perhaps good as many companies are already reporting higher productivity levels.

The logic behind it is also clear. Many professionals don’t have to commute any longer. They’re back home as soon as they switch off their computers nowadays. So, they have more quality time for themselves and their families.

People are regularly helping their school-going children with their homework, which is something that many wouldn’t have anticipated before the COVID-19 outbreak.

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Get better at getting better

Professionals are now making good use of their time as well. Some are investing their time in a hobby while some are upskilling themselves for better job prospects. Work-from-home is providing an opportunity for many to experiment with their newly-acquired culinary skills. Others are finding gardening more appealing to beat their stress.

Unsurprisingly, people are developing a knack for managing several household chores, while mastering them and finding alternatives to a monotonous life at home. Similarly, another popular trend among tech-savvy office-goers is to learn computer languages and coding skills.

Several online edtech portals are helping professionals to enroll in coding camps for Machine Learning, Blockchain, and more, thereby enabling them to up their game.

Overcoming limitations

The millennial generation is perceived by many as an age-group which possesses out-of-the-box thinking. It is often expected to address everyday problems by donning the role of a change agent, even in challenging times such as these.

In such scenarios, conventional wisdom might drive us to think linearly, as we decide to lock ourselves up and stay home. However, there are other alternatives to such constraints while working remotely.

The current paradigm has extended many creative working professionals an opportunity to relocate to isolated regions of the country and beyond.

Their workplace now could be anywhere from a coastal village in Tamil Nadu to the Himalayan foothills in Uttarakhand. Some even prefer offshore destinations such as Singapore and Thailand. ‘Staycations’ is the term used for this work-vacation lifestyle.

Such ‘stays at work’ or staycations ensure that you are not in a high-risk metropolitan city. They give you considerable liberty to move, while also ensuring a truly immersive travel experience. You have enough space to experience your natural surroundings, while simultaneously having a healthy frame of mind to be productive with your work.

The global scientific community believes that the world might see a COVID-19 vaccine by early-2021. Some experts deem that there are fewer chances of a fully effective vaccine even by the end of the next year. So, ‘work-from-home’ and ‘stay-at-work’ cultures might be here to stay for the foreseeable future.