Get up. Go to the workplace. Comply with the working day. Back home. And every day, start over. This is the most common routine of any average professional… or should we say “was”? It depends on who you ask.
After all, in addition to new types of professions framed in a digital context, and the growth of freelance professionals, either by choice or necessity, new ways of doing work are also emerging.
Telecommuting, that is, working remotely without going to the office in person, usually from home; co-working, working in shared spaces with other freelancers or teleworkers; or “smart-working”, working from cafeterias or other places, are some examples.
And another formula, which goes further, is that of digital nomads: work from anywhere and travel as part of that job or, simply, for the pleasure of changing places while performing a digital profession that allows it.
Remote work: future in the present
Precisely remote working from home grew noticeably as a result of the Coronavirus health crisis when quarantines and confinements led to a situation in which not going out or meeting was essential.
According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the increase in teleworking occurred at the international level, although to a different extent depending on the country. In 89% of cases in which they did not work from home, the reason was because the job itself was not compatible with this modality.
“I already worked a lot from home before the Pandemic, so what for some is new, for me it is absolutely normal,” Naiara, a young woman used to teleworking.For Naiara, “it is clear that there are many jobs that require attendance”, and for this reason she considers herself “a privileged one”, and explains: “the pandemic has left many people without work, others the adaptation to do so from home it has been hard for them… For me, it has not had that impact”.
And it is that her profession, editor and content creator, is one of those new digital jobs: “in my case I just need a computer, internet access and a lot of inspiration… So before the pandemic I practiced a lot of ‘smart-working ‘ and I was looking for the muses in some cafeteria”, she comments, although she adds: “but I have to admit that with COVID-19, for the moment, I have not dared to return and I only work from home”.
Conciliation versus relationship
According to a study published in an article by Software Guru, Costa Rica was one of the Latin American countries that was ahead (20% incorporation into this work model).
Companies tend to be more reluctant than teleworkers when it comes to implementing it. The latter find benefits, such as greater productivity and concentration, less stress, time savings and better family reconciliation.
On the other hand, they miss the office environment and the relationship with colleagues, less rest, greater isolation and difficulty disconnecting from work. Something with which Naiara agrees: “I have lived them all”, she says.
And she points out that “the worst thing is that, sometimes, it is difficult to disconnect from work and you continue to attend to the mail or write a task even after hours. Although, in any case, it compensates me”.
“It is true that the office has that atmosphere that encourages you to concentrate on work and a factor of camaraderie, but in winter, especially, I prefer by far to be able to work in a robe and pajamas with my hot chocolate by my side”, she adds.
Digital nomads: the office in the suitcase
Digital nomads. Although this concept may seem new, it already existed in the last century. But now, in the midst of the digital age and with the rise of teleworking, it has taken on a new dimension, something that the pandemic has also influenced.
In fact, according to an investigation by MBO Partners and Emergent Research published by Byte Magazine, in the United States the number of digital nomads grew by 49% in 2020 compared to 2019.
Thus, at the end of the year 2021 and with the new waves of coronavirus around the various countries, 80% of these teleworkers plan to stay in the host country for an average year, compared to 7% who were thinking of moving.
Because the key to these nomads is precisely that: they change places. In some cases, for long periods, without a fixed home. In others, making occasional trips to continue teleworking at the destination, and then return home for another season.
Of the latter, 42% make trips between one day and two weeks, while 23% travel between one and two months each time, according to the publication 20 bits.Again, digital professions that do not require face-to-face are the most common in this lifestyle: SEO experts, programmers and software developers, community managers, “influencers”, consultants, content creators… Like, for example, Naiara.
“I already tried this summer to telework from the beach: I wanted to extend my stay there without harming my work and I liked the experience so… Who knows, maybe the next interview will be answered from a distant island,” the young woman ventures.
And you, would you put your work in the suitcase? It seems that, in times of the internet, the possibility is there!.
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