No, Online Meetings and Work From Home Are NOT The “New Normal”
Lots of prognosticators predicting we’ll never go to the office again, nor will we ever attend another live event. This is the “New Normal” they say — a phrase I’ve heard thousands of times since early March.
The prognosticators are wrong and I’ll tell you why in three simple categories: Discipline, Participation, and the Human Effect.
Discipline
At the moment, people are willing to avoid the office and work from home. Eventually, employers will realize this model works for some but not for all. Why? Discipline. Or, more appropriately, a lack thereof.
Remember a fundamental rule of economics, which at it’s core is the study of human behavior: people do what they can get away with.
Left to our own devices all of us have a tendency to screw around. You can do a lot more screwing around when you’re not being supervised at the office. And let’s not forget the distractions. A whole lot of people are “working” from their couch with a bag of chips and the remote control in hand. For maximum output, the troops need brought into order.
Participation
We talk a lot about collaboration and teamwork in our organizations. Those things take a hit when people are kept apart for extended periods.
I know, you’ll tell me that participation can be achieved through technology. But I’ve been on those teleconferences. One of my new roles is assisting clients create better, more productive online meetings.
A recent teleconference I worked on was supposed to have 23 attendees plus me. We had 14. 3 people “no showed” and 6 attendees never turned on their cameras or microphones, meaning they clicked “join” to get credit for attending even though they really didn’t.
Without participation, your organization loses energy. Ideas aren’t fostered, brainstorming doesn’t happen, and synergies don’t develop. Face to face interaction forces people to be present, versus simply logged on.
The Human Effect
Humans are social beings. That’s why solitary confinement is the harshest form of punishment shy of the death penalty. People like to get together and be people. At the office they hit the break room, chat at the water cooler, and catch up on the latest story. It’s what people do.
Likewise, people enjoy connection — the real kind, not just the internet version. Folks like to network, sell, talk, drink, complain, compare, teach, learn, and engage in person. Our technology has evolved faster than we have. We’re still humans. Most of us still prefer business with a handshake.
Not The New Normal
To be clear, I’m not stuck in yesteryear. Online meeting platforms are quite handy and I use them often. As for working from home or remotely, I’ve been successfully doing so since 1994.
When I say an office-less and conference-less world isn’t the new normal, it’s not because I can’t handle change. It’s because I understand human behavior. Humans lack discipline. They require certain parameters to induce participation. And they have an instinctive need to connect — whether it’s in the conference room to make a big sale or in the hotel bar to complain about their boss.
Damian Mason is a Keynote Speaker, Author, Podcaster, Agriculturalist, Businessman, and Observer of People. For speaking inquiries, consulting requests, books, or to connect go to www.damianmason.com