(The following is an excerpt from the book, Hacking Normal by John Stevenot available on Amazon.com)
According to a survey run by FlexJobs.com, a major online employment network for remote workers, 65 percent of workers think they would be more productive telecommuting versus working in a traditional workplace.
That’s phenomenal.
When asked to elaborate, employees say that working from home makes them more productive because they can better juggle their work and life responsibilities.
Some workers want to be able to pack a lunch for their kids in the morning as they see them safely to the bus, while others want to get to the gym before they start their day.
Personally, I like taking 20 minutes before my workday to read, meditate, or practice a new language via an app like Duolingo.
In the same survey, when asked, “Where do you go when you have a really important work task or project to do?” 93 percent of people said it isn’t the office.
According to the FlexJobs survey, only 7 percent of workers say the office is their location of choice if they need to be most productive on important work-related projects.
What about you? Just a Fad?
What if this “remote work thing” is just a fad? That’s a legitimate concern, but according to research performed by Elite Daily, 60 percent of office jobs will be remote by 2022.
At the time of writing this, that’s less than five years away. If you believe that you’re protected by being in the 40 percent that won’t or can’t become remote, Elite Daily also discovered that, within the next 25 years, the “normal” working hours will be erased.
Working days will change to just a few hours of tasks a day or week.
What are you going to do with all that extra time when your workday ends before noon? These are real questions and predicaments that you must start thinking about.
As a side note, if you think your job is protected because you work in a S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) field, it’s not. Companies want the best scientists, mathematicians, designers, and engineers (structural, software, hardware, etc.) in the world.
With countries like India and China quickly catching up to and, frankly, surpassing the U.S. in the areas of S.T.E.M., companies are investing in infrastructure and cloud technology that allows for outsourced individuals to work and deliver their products instantly over the Internet.
In other words, you’re no longer competing with the local guy, you’re now competing with everyone in the world who wants to do the job.
Don’t Freak Out
I don’t want to freak you out with doom and gloom. The world isn’t ending, and jobs are not going to completely disappear due to automation like many think they will. But I do want you to grasp the impending change that is coming.
Don’t worry, though, I’m not in the business of scare tactics and fear mongering. I’m not trying to get rich off fear or drama. I’m a genuinely positive guy, and I want you to succeed.
So, let’s look at the positives that are coming down the pipeline.
First, I want you to realize that even though companies have every capability and right to outsource their entire operation overseas, they won’t. There’s something about a native that is familiar and trustworthy. Take advantage of that.
Second, you’ve got an amazing opportunity to own this new job reality. As someone reading this book, you are getting in before the storm. Remember, 2022 is the published milestone for when companies will start making major changes and transitioning to remote workers. This is the time to act and make yourself, as Cal Newport says, “So good, they can’t ignore you.”
We will learn about Cal and his idea about being unignorable later. For now, know that to survive in this remote future, skills will trump passion every time. In fact, if you approach this new work economy with the idea that you’ll be able to work only on things that you are passionate about, you’ll have a hard time surpassing others and retaining your streams of income. We’ll talk about multiple sources of income later, as well.
Third, this new work economy might make it seem like a lot of your previous knowledge will be useless, but that is far from the truth. The skills of marketing, engineering, or teaching aren’t going away – the only thing that is changing is the medium through which the work is performed. Opportunity is not disappearing – in fact, opportunity is becoming more abundant.
With this new work economy, it is possible for you to carve out your own niche of expertise, in which you can provide your services, experience, or knowledge in industries that have a high demand for your skills.
The only caveat: you need to become the best that you can be. Bring value to the marketplace and constantly watch for the latest practices, trends, and tools to help you do more. In order to succeed, you’ll need to implement a system for constantly learning and improving.