Three Lessons We Have Learned From Working During Lockdowns

After almost a year into the global pandemic, with the UK currently going through our third lockdown, it is fair to say we have had to adapt to different ways of working everyday, whether that be in the office or working from home. There are some lessons to be learned from working during lockdowns and the pandemic itself, what have we learned and how will the lockdowns change the way we work forever?

Flexible working more… flexible.

Flexible working and the idea of working from home was a relatively new concept to the modern workplace, it seemed to be a pipe dream that was unheard of, and only those who work for themselves could really work from home. Some more forward thinking companies, had already implemented work from home roles into their businesses, but again, this was a very rare and taboo working concept.

Then, coronavirus took control of the world, and it was said that for those who could work from home, should, as the UK was plummeted into a full lockdown, something we have never seen in our country before. Offices were closed down and people slowly got used to working from home, and let’s face it, making it work.

Flexible working is something to be considered for the months and years ahead, as we look to get rid of this virus once and for all. Being more flexible with your employees can have great benefits for them, and studies have suggested that some businesses have thrived throughout lockdown thanks to a less pressured approach to the workplace, as many employees say they feel more relaxed from eliminating the need to commute.

Of course, this won’t work for every business, but offering flexible working to your employees is a great benefit to consider if you are able to offer it and have seen great results from the work from home experiences.

Mental health at work matters…

Most of us will have felt the effects of this pandemic mentally, and although mental health has always mattered, the importance of good mental health and wellbeing has never been so brightly shone upon in the spotlight.

We spend a lot of time working, and making sure our mental health is in good check should always be a priority, and during this global pandemic, it has never been more important to check in with your friends, family and your co-workers, as we all deal with things very uniquely.

We predicted mental health matters to become high priorities for many businesses who want to welcome their employees back to work in a reassuring and comfortable manner after over a year of uncertainty and worry.

An opportunity to reinvent and re-evaluate…

Moving forward, we have learned so much about resilience, patience and how quickly our lives and businesses can change. After a whole year of unpredictable and unprecedented circumstances, that have seen many businesses question their future, it’s easy to focus on the negative, instead of focusing on the positive opportunities that could present themselves if you work on them, whilst the world has slowed down.

Living in the moment has become a coping mechanism for many of us, but is also the perfect coping mechanism for businesses to capitalise and grow by using the moment to seek opportunity to reinvent and reevaluate areas of the business you may feel that you had less time before the pandemic.