I miss office life… yes, really!

Ricky Gervais’ take on British office life in the successful sitcom of the early noughties, whilst at times alarmingly accurate, painted a somewhat depressing picture. A middle-aged, white man in the position of manager, showcasing talents in cringeworthy humour, reliance on winging-it, and most likely his ability to find lost balls on the golf course. A collection of lost, frustrated, bored employees thrown together in an uninspiring office in Slough, finding little connection or meaning in the work they do. Watching the clock for the end of the day and desperately trying to avoid interacting with the boss.

Workplaces have certainly come a long way since this depiction, yet the stigma and scars are still there. For many, working in an office still conjures images of dusty old filing cabinets, a graveyard of paperclips and staplers, and the people – similarly musty, avoiding conversation with colleagues at all costs, keeping their heads down, getting the list of tasks done until the point that leaving won’t turn too many heads.

It remains a touchy subject today, as the tug of war between leaders and employees continues over what working life should look like, how often we need to go into offices, even what we need to do when we’re there. Today, the image above of a deserted office is a common sight.

I believe office life is seriously under-rated.

Over almost 20 years of my working life, I’ve experienced some of my most enjoyable moments in the office.

Instances of hilarity – shared, uncontrollable laughter at something ridiculous; feelings of genuine connection and understanding with colleagues, managers, team members; shared experiences of learning and breakthrough ideas (things I could never have achieved on my own); moments of pride and exhilaration, as collectively, we achieved a milestone or overcame a challenge.

Overwhelmingly, it has been a place where I have felt part of something, that I belong, I am valued, and that together we can grow and achieve more.

Here are some of the positive attributes I feel we can take for granted in office life:

1. First and foremost, are TV recommendations. I’m serious… where else can you interrupt the algorithm telling you to ‘watch this, because you watched that…’ and access suggestions from a diverse group of people? And I must confess, even this observation is from a good office friend of mine Tanya Farbrother ! She’s right. One of my favourite parts of the office day is a discussion with an assorted group of people about what to watch on the box. TV is about switching-off, being taken somewhere else, but it’s also about learning and appreciating different perspectives and experiences. If we stay in our marketing profiles, narrowing our influences, life would be dull, and ideas constrained.
2. Freedom to wear just your work persona. As soon as I walk into the office, I adopt a slightly different persona to the one I left at home and the school gates. In many ways, this feels empowering. I have a similar, yet distinct, disposition in these four walls. My identity is work-linked, and whilst home life creeps in around the edges, it generally is at my discretion. It is helpful to focus on the impact and enjoyment I have in this part of my life whilst interacting with others also wearing their work personas. Working from home, whilst beneficial in other ways, can bring different challenges through muddling identity and purpose.
3. Seeing the funny side. Laughter is infectious. How often do you see groups of teenagers in absolute stitches, unable to control their laughter about something you have absolutely no clue about? It is likely innocuous; something only they understand the meaning of. Groups of people working in a shared workspace often experience this phenomenon. At certain stages throughout the day, humour just flows. These moments of light can really cut-through the dark; the lows suddenly feeling less insurmountable. These friendly, supportive interactions carry you through and leave you feeling positive and cheerful.
4. Incidental learning. On a busy day in the office there are so many opportunities within the flow of work to learn from others. Over-hearing how more experienced colleagues pitch a new solution; seeing someone else deftly manage a disgruntled customer; perhaps trying your own hand at coaching through supporting a newer colleague with a challenging situation as it unravels. So much of what we learn is in the moment. Training courses are helpful, but often we don’t need to apply the learning for months, perhaps years, later. The opportunity to listen-in or walk-over to someone in person and access support and advice on ‘how to’ is massively undervalued
5. Conversations that start friendships. There has been a lot in the news on younger generations entering the workplace and not knowing how to strike up a conversation with colleagues. Yet, across all generations, we need to access social support to make our way through the complexities and ambiguities of everyday life. The importance of weak ties (acquaintances or people we ‘know’ via closer ties) has long been talked about in relation to uncovering career opportunities (LinkedIn has built a whole community on this basis!), but it is also proven to impact our well-being. Interacting with weak ties – the colleague in IT we see most days and exchange pleasantries (but not names) with, or the cafe staff who always engage in chat about your day, the weather, the menu – these relationships make us feel connected and optimistic. The people we work with, bump into at the coffee machine, chat nonsense with, or even develop innovative solutions to significant problems with, are all important in feeding our needs as social beings. The decisions we make today about where to spend our time and the core skills we develop in making conversation, could hold us back from nurturing the friendships on which later we will rely on and cherish.

After 40, 50, 60 years of work, what do you want to walk away with?

Just as I finish clearing up from a mid-week lunch at home, I’m reminded of a couple more office virtues – the instant access to meals (already prepared!) and hot drinks (nice coffee at the touch of a button). And, no washing up.