If you’re like us at Hibob, your entire global company has gone remote in the blink of an eye. And, you’re uncovering new and uncharted challenges every single day. But as with any crisis: positivity, silver linings, and gallows humor are crucial for our sanity and wellbeing. 

And aside from being downright grateful to have any work at all, we’ve discovered some quite unexpected joys from the new remote situation! Here’s our top five:

1. Physical distancing has resulted in emotional closeness with colleagues

With everyone stuck in the same boat with nowhere to go, FOMO (fear of missing out) has become a thing of the past. Now, online interactions have become more precious. We’re face-timing and Whatsapping our colleagues more often. We’re listening closer; sharing how we’re coping with this strange, new way of life. By increasing our empathy and compassion towards each other – with the right mindset – team bonds should be strengthened in the long term.

2. Travel frazzle has been replaced by work in our freshest hours

Commuting, especially in the city, can be traumatic for some of us. Nobody really wants to start their working day on a packed out train with a close-up view of someone’s armpit. But now, we’ve got those lost hours of our life back! And whatever you do with that extra time gained from commuting – whether it be an extra hour’s sleep (guilt-free), working out, or reading to your kid. There’s no doubt we can embrace this bonus time in the day to be more productive in our work and personal lives.

3. We have more time at lunch and dinner to cook with our nearest and dearest

If you’re lucky enough to be in quarantine with the people you’re close with – family, friends, kids, loved ones, or pets (or unlucky – depending on how you see it!), you’re going to be seeing a whole lot more of each other. More than ever before. Okay, this might be distracting, intense, even testing: especially with young children. But with no more work travel, you have a new kind of opportunity to show you care for each other. Even if it just means that you dice the potatoes, and I’ll shred the carrots. Or whatever else you can find in the cupboard.

4. Our yoga mats and running shoes have seen more use… possibly more than ever

It may have taken a global pandemic to get many of us to start working out regularly. But there’s no doubt that our gym clothes will see a new lease of life for the foreseeable. From being sat down in our newly forged home offices all day, most of us will crave some form of movement and exercise on the day. And the good news is, you don’t need a gym to be fit. So now we can all return to the office ripped – prison-style! 

5. It’s forced us to innovate and be creative… quickly

Being constrained at home is a potential trigger for innovation. We’re hungry for stimulation. So we’re forced to recalibrate, search for new ways to solve problems, be heard, and regain our sense of purpose. And what better way to achieving that, than with our work? Being thrown into this new situation has forced many of us to innovate, and pivot faster than ever before to stay afloat in testing times.

Summing up, Winston Churchill was not wrong when he said: “never let a good crisis go to waste”. With the new work from home situation, we have no choice but to make digital work thrive. And to do so, we need to take care of each other first. So let’s try our best to focus on the positive. First and foremost: to be grateful we still have jobs. And second, that with the right mindset, we could come out of this better human beings. And perhaps, collectively, with fresh new ideas on how to create a better future of work.

From Verity Raphael

Verity Raphael is a Senior Marketing Executive based in the London office. Since graduating with a Masters in English, she has progressed from sales to marketing at Hibob: helping the European People and Talent community feel more valued and connected to their company and colleagues. Outside of work, her passions include modernist literature, underground music, Scandinavian design, positive people and art galleries.