š„± Wait, who is being lazy? | Ep10 OoO
Nothing justifies this much shade not even working remotely from the beach.
š„³ LinkedIn: OoO celebrates reaching 1 millionĀ
š¤µ Andrew Allen: Why I created Out of Office
š Market Watch: Fed study says remote workers are lazy
š§ Listen
š Hey! Welcome Back -
Itās episode 10 of Out of Office and weāre celebrating over a million views!
First off, a big thank you to everyone who has been watching.
So this week weāre going to do a bit of a recap on my favorite stories so far, and Iām going to share why I created Out of Office in the first place.
Then to top it off, I have some interesting stats that claim remote workers are getting lazier. (Hint: Itās bs)
Hold onto your party hats -
š Reaching 1 Million: The Stories That Blew My Mind
Itās been awesome to see how well this series has been received on LinkedIn.Ā
We recently reached our millionth person - wow!
Over the last 10 episodes weāve unearthed some mind-blowing stories making headlines and shaping narratives.Ā
š Here are some of my favorites:
Nigeria rises due to remote
Remember the Nigeria story? The entire country has a new economic outlook thanks to remote work. Itās set to inject 50 billion into the economy over the next 10 years.
Beka Anardiās life changes forever
In episode 8 we told you the story of Beka Anardi, a woman with a physical disability who has returned to work, and is thriving thanks to the WFH model.Ā
Amazon CEO embraces remote work
In episode 6 we reported on the 180 that Andy Jassy, (Amazonās CEO) has done on remote working. Proof that even big time CEOās can see the writing on the wall.
Still nothing compares to the discussions weāve been having.
These productive conversations have been fantastic - thank you!Ā
šļø Out of Office: The Untold Story
There are literally millions of remote workers in the world right now.
Before OoO, there was no news source that informed people what was happening on the many frontiers of the WFH revolution š.
When you work remotely, you have to keep up-to-date on the rapidly changing rules that will impact your future. Every news story is a piece of the puzzle, slowly forming what we will come to know as the next step in workplace culture.Ā
OoO gives you the scoop in real time so that you can connect the dots and eventually - see the big picture.Ā
The picture that impacts your future. Itās for you.
š“ FRBNY: Remote Workers are LAZY(?)
Iāve found that most stories on remote work are naturally positive.Ā Iād be lying if I said they were always that way. Thereās a negative side too.
And Iām not afraid to tackle the big questions here and go saber to saber with the dark side of the workforce.Ā
š¤ Real Talk: The Dark Side of Remote
In this weekās story, we zoom in on some dire data coming out of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Take a look -
š¤ Doesnāt look great.Ā
At first glance, it seems like remote workers are working less and spending more time doing other things.Ā
Chris Matthews writes -
ā...a new analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York shows that workers in the U.S. are taking advantage of a widespread shift toward remote work to spend more time sleeping and engaging in leisure activities.ā
The data is saying that people who WFH are lazy.
Thatās some serious shade.
What happened to the data that said people are more productive when they WFH?Ā
This kind of narrative reinforces what blinkered CEOās want to believe right now -that people who arenāt in the office, aren't working.
Thatās just not true.
These CEOs have denied that productivity increases, saying that any gains were once-off anomalies because of the pandemic.Ā
Sure we all rallied together to get stuff done back then, but itās been a minute.Ā
In 20 years when the world is run by Gen Z, boundaries will keep being pushed.Ā
Thatās normal, but we havenāt collectively agreed on the rules - yet.
š What is Lazy and What is Normal?
Everyone has different opinions about what is and isnāt acceptable on the clock.Ā
Is it okay to supervise kids?
Take a personal phone call?
Clean your house?
Start dinner?
What is and isnāt okay comes down to the individual. There will always be a dip after something new settles. No-one knows what will happen to remote productivity if we leave workers to their own devices.Ā
Iām a rational optimist.Ā
Iām going to work hard whether Iām checked or not, and youāre probably the same.
But not everyone is like that.
Thatās the problem no-one has figured out how to solve.Ā
Some companies let employees do whatever they want
Some (like the one I work for) monitors data inputs and gets flack for it
I respect both perspectives.Ā
When the dust settles weāll see what comes out on top.
Companies may use remote policy to lure talent away from competitors
Countries may introduce laws that change the rules for everyone
This period of change, this conversation, is ongoing.Ā
š¦ø Our Promise
Here at OoO, we promise to update you on the latest changes - whenever new information hits the wires.Ā
And donāt dwell on the idea that remote workers are lazy.
That graph has been misinterpreted.Ā
It conveniently leaves out the massive window of time workers spend commuting.Ā
The study doesnāt measure total productivity - it measures what people do with the time that theyāve saved from their commute.Ā
This ādead timeā was never used for work.
All the study shows is that remote workers are staying productive while they work. And that theyāve reclaimed five or so hours of dead time that they can now use as they please.
And who wouldnāt spend it on friends, family and hobbies?
They can take that lazy shade and shove it where the sun donāt shine.Ā
What do you think, are remote workers lazy?
Thatās all for today - and remember the future of work is Out of Office.Ā
Andrew
š” This Weekās Shareable
A Fed study claims remote employees are working less, sleeping and playing moreā¦ that theyāre lazy! But the data conveniently leaves out the dead time reclaimed by the employees. More on Out of Office this week.