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"The Great Resignation”

Life in a Post-COVID World

By Emilie TurnerPublished 2 years ago 3 min read
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COVID. The bane of everyone’s existence. It caused fear, chaos and numerous deaths. As a socially anxious person I personally enjoyed the isolation time, but that time is now over and the world has changed. But for better or worse?

We’re emerging into a different world now. Things have changed so much and yet so many things have stayed exactly the same.

I found myself questioning my employers when the “return to work” policies came out. The brunt of COVID may be over but it felt irresponsible to force every worker back into the office. We’d adapted to working from home, become experts at Zoom meetings and invested money to enable us to have the equipment needed for remote work.

As I received the notice that returning to the office 5 days a week was mandatory I found myself questioning my desire to remain in my job. I grew to like working from home. I worked harder and was far more productive without the chaos of an office looming over me.

During isolation I started to priorize things I cared about. I could wake up later, log onto work and when the day was done I would close my computer and head to the living room. I was able to spend more time with my young baby, something I valued so much. Rather than having him at daycare for 10 hours a day he was home with me. I worked and he played.

Even when they daycares reopened it worked better for my family. I’d start at 7 and finish at 3. My husband worked 8-4. He would take our son to daycare in the morning and I would pick him up. He spent more time with us and we thrived being with him more.

I thought the work/life balance thing was a myth. You needed to work to pay bills in order to live your minimal life. Working remote showed me exactly how balanced life can be. When we were called back into the office I questioned why, but never heard a real answer. It didn’t make sense to return when productivity had been higher from home.

“The Great Resignation”. It sounds almost fantastical and yet also terrifying. I’ve heard the term thrown around many times now. Our generation realized how effective remote work was and we wanted to continue working that way. We were learning how to balance work and life and don’t want to compromise our happiness for cash anymore.

I resigned from my position. I found a part-time remote work position and I thrive in it. Heading back into the office full-time didn’t sit right with me, and as this time is being dubbed “The Great Resignation” I’m assuming it didn’t sit well with many others too.

Each generation learns from the last. Each generation improves on the last and continues pushing forward to change the world. I believe that part-time remote work or even full-time remote work is a way to push forward in the world post-COVID. Some people thrive in the office and some people don’t… there should be flexibility for different workers.

I couldn’t deal with the inflexibility. Full-time in the office or no job. It was an easy choice for me, despite the financial aspect. I decided to prioritize my own happiness and the happiness of my family. Flexible working is crucial moving forward in the working world and I am incredibly grateful to be able to stay home with my child more and still earn some money.

One day I hope the world completely moves to flexible working arrangements. Leaders have to understand the world is changing and workers need that flexibility in order to work to their best abilities. I don't mind working from the office but there needs to be flexibility in place. A few days from home. Ability to work from home when a child is sick or unable to go to daycare. It would make a world of difference.

For now, I will continue to work from home and hustle my own projects on the side. I work better remotely and I love that I had the chance to learn this through COVID isolation.

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About the Creator

Emilie Turner

I’m studying my Masters in Creative Writing and love to write! My goal is to become a published author someday soon!

I have a blog at emilieturner.com and I’ll keep posting here to satisfy my writing needs!

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