It’s all about the people

Remote work sucks. At the beginning of the pandemic, it seemed fun - a welcome change, a common experience. But now it has run its course. Sure, you don’t have to commute. Sure, you can live anywhere you want (not really true). Sure, you can create your own work space. Sure, you can have a more flexible schedule. But I really miss people. I really miss coming into the office and hearing the quiet chatter of a shared mission. I miss sitting in meetings and having a laugh. I miss being able to pull up my chair to someone else’s desk and chat about an idea. I miss pair programming. I miss being in meetings and furiously sketching out ideas on a whiteboard. I miss gossip. I miss getting lunch with work colleagues who turn into real friends. I miss people I didn’t like until I worked with them. I miss taking walks with people and getting coffee. I miss the serendipitous discovery. I miss having my dining room table just be my dining room table. I miss grabbing a drink after work, or random happy hours. I miss overhearing people talk about something interesting. I miss working late and going home exhausted. I miss finding out quirky things about other people. I miss seeing people’s body language and their feelings. I miss the night shift crew. I miss shooting the shit with the cleaning and the security people. I miss meeting people from different parts of the company who I would never otherwise collaborate with. I even miss the noise - and I hated the noise. All those benefits? I would gladly give them up. Is that being old-fashioned? A thing of the past? I don’t think so - I think it’s just being human. As the cliché goes: “It’s all about the people”.