Click here to get this post in PDF
There was once a time when many people had adapted to the lockdown-era work-from-home life so well that it looked like they could continue benefitting from this arrangement even long after COVID-19 lockdowns were a common occurrence.
However, recent hikes in household bills have led many workers based at home to consider returning to the traditional office. If you are one of these workers, how can you transition yourself to the office in a way that keeps many of your current tried-and-tested work practices intact?
Energy prices are painting an increasingly scary picture
For millions of UK households, the average yearly energy bill will grow from £1,971 to £3,549 this October, ITV News notes. However, this price cap is expected to surge even further in the winter.
“Using extra energy when the heating would usually be off will be especially noticeable on bills this year with prices rising by 80%,” Uswitch energy spokesman Ben Gallizzi has commented.
He added: “Not only do people working from home use more energy staying warm, they are also cooking lunch and making cups of tea, as well as running computers, TVs and phone chargers.”
The traditional office is noticeably becoming more attractive
According to research by MoneySuperMarket, some 14% of Britons intend to spend more of their work time in this office as a way of saving on home energy bills. This percentage rises to 23% among Britons aged 18-24.
Similarly, in a YouGov poll highlighted by Workplace Insights, 23% of workers aged under 35 who have the option of working from home have admitted that they would contemplate coming into the office more often due to increasing energy prices.
Nonetheless, returning to the office can come with its own costs — like those of commuting and, in the case of working parents, childcare. So, you could still find yourself somewhat torn between home and the office — and, as a result, potentially hold off committing fully to either option.
Could your work practices take a big hit if you do return to the office?
Not necessarily. It’s not impossible that many methods you have grown accustomed to at home could easily be used in the office as well.
Now could actually be a good time for you to take up a few new work habits that you know you could seamlessly take with you as you shift between home and the office. That way, if you need to keep making that shift in either direction, you shouldn’t face too much disruption in the process.
For example, you could now set up a webinar platform on your work computer, allowing you to hold webinars as and when useful. What is a webinar? Search Engine Journal describes it as “an online seminar”. So, what is a webinar platform? Just click that link for a good answer.
Meanwhile, keeping an array of work files in cloud storage would make it simple for you to access those documents again, regardless of whether you attempt to do so from home or the office.
You may also like: 5 Reasons Why Some Businesses Failed to Make the Most Out of the Work From Home Situation
Image source: Shutterstock.com
