WLP235 Reflecting on Connection and Disconnection in Remote Teams
Welcome to the final part of our ‘connection and disconnection’ series with ShieldGEO. Today we look back at these episodes and what we’ve learned from them, during an unexpectedly transitional time for the remote work space.
If you haven’t caught up with the rest of the series we highly recommend doing so, host Bree Caggiati has brought us fascinating insights from a wide range of guests with different perspectives on this issue. (Check out the episodes in order: WLP221, WLP223, WLP225, WLP228, WLP231, WLP233.)
For today we share a round-table discussion, featuring Pilar and Maya from Virtual Not Distant, as well as Tim Burgess from ShieldGEO.
When we planned this series back in late 2019 the remote working world - in fact the world as a whole - was a very different place to where we find ourselves now. These 7 episodes have brought us on a complicated journey, as we really dug into the issue from so many different points of view.
Maya found writing the show notes a very interesting process, and initially had concerns about capturing a coherent narrative for a written summary, in shows with up to 8 guests. But she found that the consistency and convergence was unexpectedly high within each episode, leading to strong standalone content that worked every time - it really felt like each one was a continuous conversation between people in the same room.
For Pilar the depth with which the series tackled this topic and broke it down was particularly valuable, because it would have been easy to try and cover everything in a single episode - instead of teasing out the different layers of the problem and the different roles each party brings to resolving it. Maybe the series structure can provide a guide for those tackling the problem of the different stages involved.
Because the series made each of us reflect on our own experiences in context too, and the way we all have a tendency at times to think our perceptions and feelings are shared with others. Especially at the moment when so many people are forced to work from home, we should remember that, as Tim put it, ‘there is no one size fits all’, no simple solution that we should all aspire to (even among those of us who chose to work from home in the first place).
Right now we’re in a state of flux, and while the way we work may have changed forever in ways we’re still guessing at just now, we should reflect on the fact that this time is so different to the normal context and is creating additional emotional strain and pressure on everyone. But Tim reminded us that change is actually normal, and the way we deal with issues and challenges is shifting all the time, requiring a bit of attention on a regular basis to ensure equilibrium. And in these strange times he has really enjoyed working from home, as it’s meant spending time with family (in ways that wouldn’t normally apply, once schools etc reopen).
What this time has meant is that some of our typical mechanisms of connection are removed from us, such as Bree’s habit of popping out for coffee when she wants to be around other people. We have all had to figure out what these distractions and diversions offer us, and try to recreate that virtually - which is not always easy. And as Pilar pointed out, noticing any dissonance requires in the first instance some understanding of where the change has come from - has the role changed, the work, the context, or the people we work with? Some of these are easier to fix than others, but diagnosis is essential first.
We could all do with developing our self-reflection skills, as well as understanding our personal needs for social interaction and connection - so that we can work on that gap the series identified, between where we are and what we want. That gap will look different to each of us, depending on a range of internal and circumstantial factors, and plays into the relative weight of responsibility for connection issues between the employer, the manager, and the individual.
No one else can self-reflect for you. But, a company culture and management style can facilitate the conversations which help trigger that kind of inner work.
Above all we should all remember that feelings of loneliness and disconnection are not unique to working from home or working remotely. It’s just that they can be highlighted, and also that the opportunities to put things right might have to be more actively sought out and applied, rather than stumbled into coincidentally. And the things which make us feel connected and confident and supported as a remote worker, also apply just as well in the colocated or hybrid workplace.
We’ve really enjoyed this collaboration between ShieldGEO and Virtual Not Distant, and we’re grateful for the amazing contributions of our guest panel over this 7 episode series. Brie’s hosting and content production has been brilliant, and Ross (as ever) made it all sound like we were recording one big conversation together, when we were self-isolating in different continents. We’d also like to thank Tim’s new puppy for adding extra cuteness to this recording.
Let’s keep the conversation going…
Please contact us, or you can tweet Virtual Not Distant, or Pilar and Maya directly, with any of your thoughts and ideas.
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