In these unprecedented times it is undeniable that the global pandemic is going to act as an accelerator of change in many areas of our lives.
We all know for instance that work will never be the same, even if we don’t yet know all the ways in which it will be different. The hybrid model trend that has surfaced, with home and office in different proportions, has for instance accelerated the demand for digital solutions designed to align the needs for health and safety but also organisational agility, interaction and collaboration.
The pandemic is providing us a unique opportunity to reimagine our working environment, to reinvent social interaction within it and also to question our relation with it.
To build on the above and optimise this opportunity, I would say it needs to start with us being curious, not only about the impact of the pandemic on the world around us, but also about its impact on us!
In short, it starts with being curious about your ‘ME’!
Last May I joined AMPLENARY ‘Raise Your Game’ first cohort. It is an intensive 6 weeks program combining the fields of neuroscience, executive coaching and personal branding conducted by 3 extraordinary coaches, each specialised in their own field. I have learned about primary and secondary personalities, conscious and unconscious bias and drivers, how to tune in my strengths and be mindful of my blind spots, brain hacking tips and much more. The cherry on the cake for someone visual like myself was wrapping it up by creating my own personal brand…. In short, for 5 weeks it was ME at the centre of it.
I invite everyone to be curious about themselves. This is even more essential with the new creative expressions of how the workspace will look and how we will interact together in this new digitally led work environment as it will result from the outcome of this curiosity.
We can already notice how this all translates into our new reality.
A significant realisation due to the pandemic and related restrictions is that people have become more aware of the value of work in their lives. This then translates into how they value their workplace and what they expect from it (amenities, job satisfaction, workplace comfort, diversity, staff interaction, virtual collaboration…).
We also know that neuroscience and psychology are becoming more and more indispensable in today’s workplace and HR strategies. With company culture and values as definite differentiators when it comes to recruiting and retaining employees, the new digital apps must integrate in their design alongside productivity and engagement.
Creative recalibration also starts happening through Biophilia combined with low-density workspace arrangements. This will address the physical concerns regarding health and safety whilst ensuring the office remains a people centric space for employees to share ideas, spark inspiration and experience company culture. All of these favouring mental wellbeing at a time of blurred work-life boundaries resulting from the hybrid system.
Whatever are the expressions of this creativity, we can say with certainty that the sudden shift to distributed work has provided a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine everything from how we do our jobs to how we run our companies.
Change is never easy, and resistance to change is part of how our brain works as our primal instinct is to stay safe. Hence the importance of looking for the right support system (as an individual or as a company) in order to channel and build efficiently on the outcomes of these creative processes triggered by change and curiosity.
Without losing the sight that it all starts with us as individuals…
Ultimately I think it is right to say that each of us is a continuous improving project.
Special thanks to
Amplenary team (www.amplenary.com)
Stephanie Bonduelle, Managing Director Tetris Design+Build UK (https://uk.tetris-db.com)
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