After five years of fully remote work, the loneliness was too much.
The COVID-19 pandemic was extraordinarily isolating. Gen Z were affected uniquely.
Many of us lived out of home, in small apartments, away from family and friends. The novelty of the “new normal” soon gave way to cabin fever—cooped up for weeks at a time.
Meetings were conducted via Zoom; async work, via Slack. This rarely results in strong interpersonal relationships. It tends to be transactional.
I remember feeling so miserable that I set up some time to use the Employee Assistance Program (which was a good decision, by the way). Connectedness to coworkers is essential for our mental health. That should be obvious, considering we dedicate 38 hours each week to our jobs.
Face-to-face is superior to remote because sharing a space is an opportunity to connect with your colleagues. It’s nice to share in-jokes with coworkers, give and receive code review feedback, solve tough problems together, and—as previously highlighted—talk shit about inconveniences. I’ll take a whiteboard over Excalidraw any day.
Does remote work have a role in the modern workplace? Of course it does. From time to time, we all need to sign for a delivery, or get the car serviced, or take the dogs to the vet, or visit the GP, and so on.
Do we need that every day? Probably not. It’s much better to have a hybrid arrangement which allows you to work remote days as necessary. Your manager and your team should trust you to do the right thing—after all, you’re a professional.