Returning to the Office

Management has recently announced that employees have to return to the office. For our organization, we will be expected to come in weekly. Naturally, there were complaints. I've been listening to some feedback and there are really a few valid reasons why some employees can't return to the office.

For instance, a person pre-pandemic used to rent a place to make it easier to get to the office. During the pandemic, they decided to stop renting and work remotely back in his province. Going to the office would now take him 2 more hours, and would cost twice as much as before. It's good management considered such scenarios and allowed for some people to come to the office monthly instead, or even work remotely permanently.

But for those that can come once a week, it may feel like a hassle. I realized that if I was able to go to the office before, it shouldn't be a problem to go back, given I have no valid reasons that prevent me from going in the first place. If transportation isn't a problem, then I have no reason to complain. Basically stop being a baby about it.

The hassle is temporary, and can be repressed if you focus on the positives. Personally, I prefer working at home, because I noticed that whenever I'm in the office, I can't get a lot of work done. People do approach me for help, or would want to make small talk. And of course it's my pleasure to respond. But I really get a lot more done at home. That is besides the convenience. If small talk and meetings can be done at home, what could possibly be a unique benefit from coming back? What are the positives?

I guess I've become my own worst enemy; from being against working from home, I'm now writing a post that's for going to the office. What we take in as positive when returning to the office, I guess is an opinion to each one. For me, the only positive is networking. I got to talk directly to my Senior Director and now he knows me by name. He knows I have an LED backpack, and even mentioned it in another meeting we had earlier this week. He knows that I played Breath of the Wild. I also got to talk to my senior manager, about rocking it out and playing songs at the studio. I got to meet the technical lead of SuiteCloud, which is a NetSuite module I've been interested in learning for the past couple of years. And that was all in one day. I think that it's this kind of small talk with middle management that can actually help you go up. The lasting connection could not have been achieved if we met remotely. It's just a matter of strategizing where you sit, and who you talk to on those days.

I still have friends that rant on social media about how returning to the office is not an option for them. Sure their reasons may be valid. The train system here in Manila is a wreck; and people hate the commute. They argue that everyone that can work remotely should work remotely. They say that remote work is the future. Perhaps it is. But I bet that these people don't leverage their office time to boost their careers. They merely treat office time the same as what they do at home, without reaping the benefits sitting right in front of them when they're at the office.

If you are required to return to the office as well, tell me your thoughts. I invite you to, instead of complaining, if you can't embrace returning to the office, at least open your eyes and imagine what different things you can do in the office that will boost your career.