Eva’s First Remote Working Experience
I thank the universe every day that I exist in a time where we can work remotely. Whether that’s from the comfort of your own bed, stood at one of those free standing ergonomic desks that cost way too much, or sat at the kitchen island in your new uni digs – like me.
Going to university is a huge shift for so many people. There is just so much to do: you have to get to grips with a brand new campus and university, attend all of your lectures and seminars, read, learn, revise, revise some more, take exams. That’s without even attempting to be social through societies, sports and going out and meeting people. Remote and flexible working gives me the opportunity to try and attempt all of this whilst still being able to fit in work and earn an income alongside my degree.
The elephant in the room that I have so far chosen to ignore is that instead of living a humble 20 minute walk away from the Village Web Company office it would now take me a whole 48 hours to walk back to the office. Talk about a commute! We’ve seen global tech companies like Google and Meta employ people literally across the globe, particularly in the region of South East Asia. That could be a whole different blog post focusing on the outsourcing of labour in tech and media industries, going into the ethics and consequences of these practices. Nevertheless, if Google can reach someone across the globe I’m sure we’ll manage just fine – unless I start picking up the accent; then we might have some issues on the zoom calls.
There’s been so much push-back on remote working in recent years due to claims of decreased productivity and this corporate urge to get everyone back into the office. Of course working in person has so many great benefits, collaboration is much more feasible and communication can happen face to face instead of through emails. Many say they prefer having the physical separation between work and home, allowing them to compartmentalize the different aspects of their life and maintain a healthy balance between the two. There’s also just the pure human element of it, working somewhere and getting to know the people around you is sometimes the best part of the job. I met one of my best friends when she had to show me how to prepare the desserts at the restaurant we worked at. Stuffed into a storage cupboard with a mini fridge and a dream of making something edible looking, we clicked instantly and have been brilliant friends ever since. That is the magic of working in-person and I can’t wait to come back and visit the Village Web Company office and get to have those days together with Claire and Will.
I’m thoroughly excited to get stuck into my course at uni, get settled, find the best spots and the quickest routes and get myself into a routine that will allow me to experience as much as possible whilst i’m here! I also can’t wait to continue working on my projects at Village Web Company, writing these blog posts, building and designing sites and more.
Signing off,
Eva