Perils and precious moments: What to keep or kick in a post-COVID world

Now is exactly the time to dream about how that new normal can be better than the life we’ve left behind, writes Mercury editor Jenna Cairney.

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THE coronavirus crisis forced us into changes we’ve previously considered too challenging to enact.

In particular, many organisations and businesses for years have given lip service to flexible working conditions and work from home opportunities but managers have traditionally preferred to see white collar workers at their desks.

Those taking advantage of work from home opportunities were considered to be slacking off or somehow not as committed as their desk-bound colleagues.

But then when COVID-19 struck, many office-based workplaces made all their staff work from spare bedrooms, dining tables or kitchen benches in homes across Australia.

Here at the Mercury, for the first time in our newspaper’s 166-year history, your daily news was written and subedited by teams working entirely from home.

We sustained that for the best part of three months.

Sure, there were challenges but every day that paper landed on readers’ lawns across the state and every hour breaking news was published on our website and app.

There are a great number of businesses – especially on the mainland – who have maintained the work from home arrangements for employees and intend to for the best part of a year.

Working from home absolutely has its limitations.

Creativity, human interaction and the speed at which decisions can be made are all benefits of being able to eyeball your colleagues daily.

And there will always be debate about whether employees are more or less productive at home.

But at home, there are fewer distractions, fewer chats in the tearoom. That’s a plus for some personality types, but not for others.

The biggest advantages to working from home are for the family dynamic.

Those working long hours in the office with a commute either side of each day suddenly claw back precious minutes and in some instances hours.

Family dinners are back on the table. You can give your kids a hug when they get home from school.

Precious moments that were long forgotten in our time-poor, rat race existence finally return – and that can only be a good thing for our relationships and our own mental health.

In the wake of coronavirus, a continuation of work from home options could be transformational for both business and families.

Bold businesses who chose to no longer pay hefty real estate bills by giving up office space could stand to save millions. Those who provide the flexibility will likely attract top talent.

Decentralisation, the ability to live regionally and more family time are all big upsides for individuals.

But major disruption presents us with new challenges.

How do our CBDs and traders respond to this sort of shift?

What do we want our city centres to look like?

The world post-coronavirus will be different.

It’s hard to look past the fear of another outbreak or not to feel despondent about when this crisis will pass.

But now is exactly the time to dream about how that new normal can be better than the life we’ve left behind.