My daughter is starting preschool this week. Although I’m full of trepidation about this (I have read too many articles about kids getting kicked out of preschool which is still wild to me), I also am very excited. This will give my daughter a chance to discover who she is without me, and I will have a chance to recapture a bit of who I was without her. And one of those bits was a love for taking my work to places that weren’t my house.

Seriously, before COVID hit and before I had a baby, it was rare that I spent significant time working in my house. It wasn’t that I missed the companionship of other people. I get more than enough of that from my clients and my social media team. But there are just so many other things I get from taking my work to another location.

Another view of a work problem

I don’t know if it’s the drive to a different location or just the changed atmosphere, but when I sit down to work after the move, I always have a new idea of what to try for a work problem. It’s just always been my go-to solution that always works without fail.

In fact, there was one day when I knew I had a lot of writing to get done. So I made a plan before I got started: Every time I got stuck writing, I would move to a new location. I moved four times and ended up getting all of the writing done plus even more on top of that. It was easily the most productive writing day I’ve ever had. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t looking forward to doing that again now that my daughter is starting school.

If you are ever feeling stuck, you could simply need to change your location. It could be within your office or to a totally different building. Try different spots until you find your inspiration.

Listening

There is something about a coffee shop that makes people think they can talk as loud as they want without other people overhearing their conversation. Maybe I’ve added to this sense of security by popping in my earbuds. Don’t tell anyone but I’m pretty sure this is something every introverted female does. It’s our protection against unwanted conversations.

But I use the earbuds so I can listen more intently. I talk to people all day, but it’s not necessarily casual chit chat. There’s a different rhythm and vocabulary to casual chit chat that you won’t find in business conversations (or in my case, my many conversations with a three year old). The more I’m in touch with the way other people chit chat, the better I am at social media.

I can copy some of the rhythms. I can talk about some of the same topics. And I can make my clients’ social media seem more friend-to-friend rather than organization-to-fan. Do you think an organization or a friend is more likely to inspire action?

If you’re finding your organization’s social media is stagnant, maybe try to re-locate your work station to where your audience is. The trick is to be incognito, which can be tricky when your audience knows your organization’s staff well. This is one of the reasons why I make sure I’m never the face of an organization’s social media in any way. It can prevent me from creating a space on social media that really connects with the audience.

Not being lonely

There is a loneliness epidemic going on in our country right now. Some companies claim they are combatting it by bringing people back into the office. To me, there is nothing lonelier than being forced to be in the same place as people you don’t necessarily like. That might be enough to push me into myself further.

However, going to my favorite places and being around people I generally like (even if the relationship is just a nod to each other) can be helpful with any loneliness I might be suffering. I would argue that our loneliness epidemic won’t be cured by forcing people back to an office. Instead, try incentivizing people to get out of their house.

What can incentivizing people to get out of their house look like when it comes to work? It can be a gift card to their favorite coffee shop. It can be a gym membership (exercise will always benefit work after all). Or it can be something as simple as a steps challenge. Although some people may hunker down in their homes no matter what, any one of these could tempt the average person to take a step outside their house.

If you’re working for yourself, it can get a bit harder when it comes to incentivizing yourself to get out of your house. Get yourself into a step challenge. Create a goal like visiting every coffee shop in your city. Or simply join a group with in-person meetups. I’ve even heard of people creating office hours at their favorite coffee shop. Then anyone can join them on a whim. You don’t have to complicate it. Just make it something that’s fun for you.

How has changing where you work benefited you?