Nishanth S Coontoor
Hey there, listen up. After 7 years of working in several roles, I am going to acknowledge something I used to either laugh off or change the topic on. I used to work from home – on and off, to manage workload and clear off my check lists.
Unlike my friends in the IT industry, work from home is typically not an option for most people in supply chain. You are required to be available in the office. And it makes sense to be available in person as well because it means face to face time with teams to get answers quickly, to build working relationships to move projects forward and learn how the product supply chain works.
Still, on occasion, when I noticed my to-do list getting longer and needed to “close out” projects, I stayed back home, went into solitary confinement and got things done.
Over the last few weeks, since the work from home became the new normal, it has seemed, how do I put it, odd! For someone like me, and possibly you, sitting at home on a weekday in shorts and working needs getting used it. It felt odd enough that to do a sanity check, I asked around how my colleagues were doing via slack. We’ve all heard the joke right – talking to your fridge or the television during isolation is normal. Its only concerning when they talk back.
Stevie, the TV, is doing fine. Thank you for asking.
Work from home now seems like the new normal. But looking beyond this, our adaptation to the corona virus situation may also transform other aspects of our life.
During World War II, when Japan invaded Southeast Asia, Japan cut off USA’s supply of Tin and Rubber. But since these were materials that were abundant in American homes and often thrown away, the federal government organized scrap drives or recycling drives. The World War II generation may continue to be weird about recycling for this reason. You and I may be the generation that will be weird about stocking up on Toilet Paper!
I started noticing the first signs of change when we involuntarily stopped shaking hands. This is a big change having taught to have a ‘firm and a confident’ handshake.
Then came the virtual meetings. I now login to zoom to attend work meetings and dumbbell snatches during my CrossFit class. I play board games and hangout with my friends online. My mom picks out veggies a Whatsapp video call without cash! Of course, she still asks for free coriander.
I am also told ‘virtual dates’ are a thing now? I’ve got to get in on this and do a pro-gamer move asap. Anyone know how to throw in some filters and ‘fix’ my large nose to get a match? SOS, like yesterday.
There are bound to be negative effects from the virus and the quarantines. But there may be some positives as well. For starters, remember all those times you were striving for a work-life balance? This is your chance to get an overdose of that family you said you were missing. Another friend suggested that if your work allows for it, your work hours are kind-a in your hand. Your day can now start at 7 am if you are an early riser or at 10 am if you aren’t a morning person. Maybe you can finally get those 100 sit-ups before you sit down at 10 am? I, for one, choose to never snooze my alarm. Because I no longer need to keep one at 5.30 am to ‘get to work.’