Well at least that's what she's probably doing, entering the station at Pimlico.
Into the office, stopping off first thing at Hotel Chocolat in Victoria to pick up chocolates for Dave's colleagues S and L who have 50th birthdays coming up.
Several team members in which was nice but sitting right next to me was one of the very loud people who's always on Teams calls. How surprised was I when he leaned over and said he knew I wasn't keen on people having meetings at their desks and to let him know if he got too loud! My reputation precedes me...
At lunchtime a few of us went to choir for the first summer term rehearsal not just J who normally goes, but IE and K too - looks like it's going to be an interesting piece by a Norwegian composer along the lines of Ola Gjeilo.
Ridiculous farrago of a senior staff briefing after that, focusing on the incoming 60 percent workplace attendance requirement. Left most of us more confused than before though it looks like it's going to be quite hardline and the HR person I spoke to after admitted what we already knew - that they're clamping down so much because people haven't been coming in at all let alone the 40 percent they've been supposed to.
Incensed - as always it's the law abiding types like us that have to suffer because of those who have been allowed to get away with not doing what they should.
Had a headache by the time I left - very tired, so we've ordered a delivery from Taro.
Have been enjoying everyone's eclipse photos - seriously thinking about planning a trip to Spain in 2026 to see a total one once more.
Deffo, Spain is just around the corner, you should go! I remember the last one well, taking photo's up Ditchling Beacon for the local paper, amazed how chilly it got so quick.
Sorry about work, I really don't see why people have to go into the office so much anymore, lockdown proved it works well without. Ed goes in maybe 3 times a year now and their company gave up the million pound office they were renting and downsized. Made much better sense imo. Hope you told the loud guy to shhhhhh :-)
Oh - soz, fab photo! Sorry for the ramble.
I would definitely encourage you to take that trip to Spain. I've been fortunate to experience totality in 2017 and 2024 and I am so glad I made the trips.
Nice photo. I do miss the underground in the UK. The trains were always on time and arrived every few minutes. It's something that Australia is still lagging back on.
@blightygal tbh, I actually love going into the office and truly believe that for most people working in your average team (as opposed to solo workers) with ordinary circumstances it's better for them and the teams. However what I'm not a fan of is the hard-line approach, not tackling new issues like everyone having meetings at their desks, nor the move to get rid of traditional workstations and replace them with touchdown spots and 'collab' areas (sticks finger down throat in disgust)... @phil_howcroft
@boxplayer Oh fair enough! I just go by the few I know who work from home who love it. No commute, no travel costs and the work life balance, example of Ed drove 2hrs every day, if the motorways were clear. They still work hard tho, no skiving! :-) And no, hardline approach with adults who have proved themselves to be valuable members of the workforce doesn't work imo, lose respect.
@blightygal yes I'm lucky in that my commute straight down the Victoria line is very easy comparatively! Long essay alert 🤣
My fairly entrenched belief that workplace working is better for most people (not those who may have health or caring responsibility obviously) is based on things like reducing the risks of some mental health issues (those exacerbated by isolation) and musculoskeletal disorders. A lot of people (not all) are going to be less disciplined at home with moving regularly, going out for that walk etc. Evidence is starting to filter through that mental health issues and things like back pain are rising (coincidence, something else? Possibly). And from our team's experience I can swear absolutely that none of them are shirking and are really productive (probably to their own detriment). The problem lies in a) how we work and communicate and get to know each other as a team ie, it's much harder to do that and b) induction and getting our new staff fully efficient is seriously impacted - before, because our processes are manifold and subject to all sorts of shifting variables, new members would sit with experienced members for days at a time to pick up the work. Now we have to rely on shadowing over Teams for briefer periods and a huge library of how-to guides that everyone forgets the contents of as soon as they've read them. We now make more mistakes as a team than before.
@boxplayer I can see your valid points and have heard them before from others - my friend in Italy said the same when lockdown came, now she's much happier working from home! She recently got a new job and complained bitterly that she had to go in the first month because of training which amused me. She got used to working from home and didn't miss the summer commute in 35oC + heat.
I guess it depends on the person & the nature of the work. Ed for example doesn't 'do' people as a general rule, so that combined with no commute makes things a lot easier for him and he's far happier. His work isn't team work stuff either, he does his bit and others do theirs so very straight-forward tho stressful hard work. The downside with him that I can see is he works harder at home, doesn't switch off easily either (I catch him working again at midnight too often) whereas his drive home, though a pain esp when motorways went wrong, was his time to decompress. I guess no hard and fast rule as differs from company to person to nature of the business.
@blightygal haha I can see you've strengthened your point re Ed's work and preferences but also bolstered my argument too with his late night working habits 🤣
Nice composition on this shot
Sorry about work, I really don't see why people have to go into the office so much anymore, lockdown proved it works well without. Ed goes in maybe 3 times a year now and their company gave up the million pound office they were renting and downsized. Made much better sense imo. Hope you told the loud guy to shhhhhh :-)
Oh - soz, fab photo! Sorry for the ramble.
Ooo Spain sounds like a good plan…
Love everything about this street shot 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Why is it that every open plan office has at least one noisy character? That is one thing I don't miss about working!
Ian
My fairly entrenched belief that workplace working is better for most people (not those who may have health or caring responsibility obviously) is based on things like reducing the risks of some mental health issues (those exacerbated by isolation) and musculoskeletal disorders. A lot of people (not all) are going to be less disciplined at home with moving regularly, going out for that walk etc. Evidence is starting to filter through that mental health issues and things like back pain are rising (coincidence, something else? Possibly). And from our team's experience I can swear absolutely that none of them are shirking and are really productive (probably to their own detriment). The problem lies in a) how we work and communicate and get to know each other as a team ie, it's much harder to do that and b) induction and getting our new staff fully efficient is seriously impacted - before, because our processes are manifold and subject to all sorts of shifting variables, new members would sit with experienced members for days at a time to pick up the work. Now we have to rely on shadowing over Teams for briefer periods and a huge library of how-to guides that everyone forgets the contents of as soon as they've read them. We now make more mistakes as a team than before.
Essay over - and relax!
I guess it depends on the person & the nature of the work. Ed for example doesn't 'do' people as a general rule, so that combined with no commute makes things a lot easier for him and he's far happier. His work isn't team work stuff either, he does his bit and others do theirs so very straight-forward tho stressful hard work. The downside with him that I can see is he works harder at home, doesn't switch off easily either (I catch him working again at midnight too often) whereas his drive home, though a pain esp when motorways went wrong, was his time to decompress. I guess no hard and fast rule as differs from company to person to nature of the business.