Last year an economic bomb detonated and laid to waste the rules and institutions that have guided our decisions related to work, life and business for generations. Shell-shocked and disoriented, we’re starting to emerge slowly from the rubble wondering not only “What happened?” but “What’s next? Welcome to the New Work+Life Flex Normal blog.
As the dust settles, it’s clear greater flexibility in work, life, career and business is here to stay. Before the recession, a few fraying threads connected us to a work+life reality that was rapidly becoming obsolete for more than a decade. The downturn severed them:
- Lifetime, stable employment with set hours, a clear career path and a consistent, always increasing pay check became a relic for workers at every level in every industry.
- Traditional operating models that were too rigid to respond nimbly and flexibly were dismantled by the rapid change inherent in the global economy.
- Full-time care giving and complete retirement for extended periods became non-viable for many, if not most, people because of economic necessity and demographic shifts.
Before the recession, enough parts of the old rule book worked for enough people—even until the banks started failing—that we avoided the difficult task of fundamentally rethinking the way we manage work, life and business to match reality. No longer. It’s officially a new work+life flex normal.
Flexibility in how, when and where work is done, life is managed and business operates is a strategic imperative. As I wrote in May, the question is no longer “if” flexibility, but how to expand the “why” behind flexibility and determine “how” to make it work for everyone. To that end, here some of the angles and implications we will ponder and discuss: (Click here for more)