– English Lyrics

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

Remote work is a an interesting case

study because it's one of the most

disruptive changes that knowledge work

has experienced since I would say the

introduction of the computer. And now

the data is very clear that we have

settled into hybrid schedules as the

semi-permanent solution. Knowledge

workers in remote capable jobs are two

times more likely to be in a hybrid

schedule any other configuration

including full-time remote or full-time

in person. The hybrid schedules lead to

these partially in office

partially at home collaboration

sessions. They're happening in virtual

meetings where some people are in a room

and other people are joining via the

network and that people uniformly report

these are less effective. It's a hard

way to collaborate. So splitting people

up between being at home and at work in

a haphazard way is not the the major

improvement to subjective well-being

that we hoped.

Here's what I've been suggesting.

Synchronize your hybrid schedule. So to

the extent possible everyone on the same

team is home on the same day and in the

office is on the same day.

And then, and here's the key part,

institute a rule that says during the

two days a week, let's say that you're

at home,

no meetings, don't email. Those are

going to be the days that you're really

working on the things that matter. The

other days are going to be the days

where we can also talk about the work.

We can do the administrative overhead.

We can meet. And hey, when we meet,

we're all here, so we can have a very

efficient meeting if we if we're all in

office.

And we're going to have two different

psychological mindsets. At home days

and in office days. Instead of trying to

mix these efforts together, instead of

trying to mix the really hard thing I'm

trying to write with a bunch of meetings

and email. By separating these two

things,

we're going to get more of a handle on

our workload. We're going to be able to

clear things out on those days we're at

home. We're going to get a cognitive

break from the the hyperactivity of

constant communication. I think we're

going to be more efficient in

collaborating when we actually

collaborate. And the result would be a

workplace in which we're more productive

and people are much happier.

So, if you're an individual

working remotely or working in a hybrid

schedule, there's a couple things you

can do to improve your situation. You

can just try to move more of your

meetings to the in-office days.

Just offer dates on the in-office days

much more aggressively for meetings. And

now what you're going to begin to get

here is just a psychological division.

When I'm at home, I have less meetings,

I have more time. When I'm in the

office, I have more meetings, I'm more

in a collaborative mindset. And you can

begin to get a lot of benefits without

having to actually have a real formal

rule that says, "Here's what happens on

these days and here's what happens on

those days."

If you're fully remote, something that

is useful is to have two different

spaces that you work.

And I don't mean this necessarily in

some extravagant way. It could be I'm at

the kitchen table is where I always do

my deep thinking and the home office is

where I do email.

It could be I sit outside if I live in a

place where the weather is good when I'm

trying to read a complicated memo or

something cognitively demanding and I

work inside when I'm doing email. You

can even have a commute. Now, people

don't like commuting for good reason.

Traffic is annoying and you get stuck,

but there is an advantage to commuting.

Your mindset has time to shift. I've

left my house. I have 20 minutes when

I'm on the subway or driving and over

these 20 minutes, I'm slowly doing the

cognitive machinations needed to get my

mindset away from home mindset

and towards work mindset. That's

actually useful. It's useful on the

other end as well. Okay, I'm going to

now leave work mindset and load up home

mindset and I have a 20-30 minute drive

to do that. So, if you work completely

from home,

simulate a commute.

Have a 15-minute walk you do to start

and end your day. I'm going to walk to

this coffee shop and get a coffee and

walk it back. That's how I begin my work

day.

You're going to get those same

psychological benefits of a transitory

ritual. A moving from home to work and

work from home, even though you never

actually change the location where all

of these activities were happening.

>> [music]

>> To watch the full class, become a member

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Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
disruptive /dɪsˈrʌptɪv/ C1	adjective - causing trouble and stopping something from continuing as usual
hybrid /ˈhaɪbrɪd/ B2	adjective - combining two different elements or styles
collaboration /kəˌlæbəˈreɪʃn/ B2	noun - the action of working with someone to produce something
haphazard /ˌhæpˈhæzərd/ C2	adjective - lacking any obvious principle of organization
synchronize /ˈsɪŋkrənaɪz/ C1	verb - to cause to occur or operate at the same time
institute /ˈɪnstɪtuːt/ B2	verb - to introduce or establish a system or rule
administrative /ədˈmɪnɪstrətɪv/ B2	adjective - relating to the running of a business or organization
overhead /ˈəʊvəhed/ B2	noun - general expenses incurred in the operation of a business
hyperactivity /ˌhaɪpərækˈtɪvəti/ C1	noun - a state of being unusually or abnormally active
productive /prəˈdʌktɪv/ B1	adjective - achieving or producing a significant amount or result
extravagant /ɪkˈstrævəɡənt/ C1	adjective - lacking restraint in spending money or using resources
commute /kəˈmjuːt/ B2	noun - the journey to and from work
machinations /ˌmæʃɪˈneɪʃnz/ C2	noun - schemes or plots; complex mechanisms or processes
simulate /ˈsɪmjuleɪt/ C1	verb - to imitate the appearance or character of
transitory /ˈtrænzətri/ C2	adjective - not permanent; short-lived

Key Grammar Structures

• Remote work is one of the most disruptive changes that knowledge work has experienced since I would say the introduction of the computer.

  ➔ Present Perfect Tense

  ➔ The phrase "has experienced" describes an action that started in the past and continues to be relevant in the present.

• Knowledge workers in remote capable jobs are two times more likely to be in a hybrid schedule.

  ➔ Comparative structures with multipliers

  ➔ The structure "two times more likely to" is used to compare probabilities or frequencies between groups.

• If you're an individual working remotely, there's a couple things you can do to improve your situation.

  ➔ First Conditional (implied/shortened)

  ➔ The use of "If + present tense" sets a condition for the future result "there's a couple things you can do".

• Instead of trying to mix these efforts together, we're going to get more of a handle on our workload.

  ➔ Gerunds after prepositions

  ➔ The verb "trying" acts as a noun (gerund) after the preposition "of".

• People don't like commuting for good reason, but there is an advantage to commuting.

  ➔ Gerunds as subjects/objects

  ➔ The word "commuting" is a gerund functioning as the object of a verb or preposition.

• I'm going to now leave work mindset and load up home mindset.

  ➔ Future intention with 'be going to'

  ➔ "Be going to" indicates a planned future action or a transition.

• You're going to get those same psychological benefits of a transitory ritual.

  ➔ Definite article with demonstrative adjective

  ➔ The phrase "those same" uses "those" as a demonstrative adjective to point to specific benefits previously mentioned.

• To watch the full class, become a member at bigthink.com.

  ➔ Infinitive of purpose

  ➔ The "to watch" phrase explains the reason for becoming a member.