Results from the survey: How is work?
Bespoke Coaching, 2021
I. Since the pandemic where are you working from?
1. Home 56%
2. Home & Office 43%
3. Office 1%
4. Somewhere else 0%
II. While working from home (comparing to work in an office) do you feel like you’re working?
1. More 49%
2. The same 37%
3. Less 14%
III. Due to the changes in your working environment have you experienced
1. Fewer creative ideas 34%
2. The same 42%
3. More creative ideas 24%
IV. What do you enjoy about working from home?
1. Less travel time 66%
2. Having more time for myself and my personal projects 39%
3. More relaxed environment 48%
4. Other 12%
V. What do you miss?
1. Interaction with others 75%
2. Spontaneous moments 62%
3. Speed in solving problems 45%
4. Other 4%
VI. Do you feel like a part of the team or an organisation when working from home?
1. Yes 52%
2. I’m not sure 25%
3. No 23%
VII. How many days per week would you like to work in the office?
1. 1 - 0%
2. 2 - 82%
3. 3 - 8%
4. 4 - 6%
5. 5 - 4%
VIII. Do you feel happy with your work/job while working from home?
6.7 Average rating
IX. As my survey can never possibly understand YOU, could you please write an honest personal account about how you’ve felt this last year? Do you still have the same motivation and ambition? (This answer can be as short or as long you want it to be - see it like therapy : ))
For this last question I received many honest, insightful and enriching responses. Here I am sharing a few quotes I picked that convey the main thoughts:
“In a sense I miss as much being with others as being somewhere else, being forced to cross spaces during the day, seeing humanity going about their day.”
“After an initial few months of non-stop zoom calls, I've embraced taking lots of walks in the forest (I get 10,000 steps often by lunchtime) and doing calls while walking.”
“Love working at home, as long as it can be combined with being together with my team regularly.”
“Looking forward to a more flexible home/office balance that I am sure will be the new normal in a few months.”
“And the colleagues on the work floor even more. Some genuine eye to eye contact and just getting a sense of how everyone is doing, what everyone is working on is stuff I'm really missing.”
“Simple moments of contact are now short group calls or messages, in which it's hard to express which of those messages matter and which don't. It's hard not to respond to a message like 'my grandpa died' in real life, yet in this new all digital reality that's just exactly what happened (true story).”
“The grey area disappears. I currently feel like my boss couldn't care less about me. Simple moments of contact are now short group calls or messages, in which it’s hard to express which of those messages matter and which don’t.”
“If taking care of a team is your job, go on at least a monthly one on one or something.”
“I’m happy to be at the mercy of a 2x1 hour commute (or worse) on a daily basis. At the same time, I don't get as much energy talking to screens as I do talking to people.”
“There's been a lot of uncertainty, upheaval and stress but also growth and positive challenges.”
“We all feel that online or hybrid working is a game changer, and here to stay.”
“So it was tricky at first and it took some time for me to adjust remotely however since the time passed by and the fewer restrictions there where I could finally interact with my colleagues at the office. It felt amazing. And since that time I'm able to work half the time at the office, half time at home.”
“Best of the whole pandemic/work situation is that it completely changed my perception of how important work is and should be in my life.”
“It was almost like a wake up call for my employers…we went from ~30 to ~15 during the pandemic… The founders started caring about the employees again, business came back, things got better.”
So what is the direction you want to take in 2022? What shape you want to create for yourself so you’re (even more) fulfilled and happy in the future to come?
I’m really grateful for your time to read this. I wish you fulfilment and success with your projects ahead! Please let me know if there is anything I could help you with.
With Warm Regards,
Joanna Stone