1 year and 3 days ago my dad passed after a six-months-battle against brain cancer.
Last year, a flexible workplace policy allowed me to visit every 2-3 weeks during those months, and to be with him during his last two weeks - even though my home base is in a different country.
Tomorrow morning we’ll start our car journey from Spain to Germany: my 7-year old twins and myself are going to travel 1,500km in three days - exploring several playgrounds between here and my mom’s place.
This year, a flexible workplace policy (this time, my own) allows me to take time off for the journey - and to work when the kids are in summer camp next week.
Last year, life events impacted work. And work gave me a purpose to pull through.
I am grateful that I was able to attend to my dad and continue working. Work gave me a sense of stability and control that I needed to not loose myself in emotional turmoil.
This year, work shapes life events. And life provides the guardrails for productivity.
I am planning and working with the kids’ summer holidays. They are excited about summer camp in Germany so I can get some workplace policy audits done. It’s interesting how much more creative and focussed I am when time is limited - and that makes me a more patient parent.
It’s not about remote - it’s about clarity
Defining your workplace policies - it’s not just about work.
It’s about the intersection between work and life, and how easy or hard it is to navigate that intersection.
So do yourself and your employees a favour.
Define what you mean when you talk about "remote" as a location.
Define what you mean when you talk about "flexible" work hours.
Having certainty in one part of life can easy the burden elsewhere.
Having certainty in any part of life can make all the difference.