Nine to Five is Out: and time, location, and financial freedom is in
They say that worldwide lockdowns due to the Covid-19 pandemic have created a different mindset about the way we work. Certainly, it has highlighted possibilities and new avenues of exploration, but in essence much of the younger working world’s mindset had already been hovering around change to the old 9 – 5 structure largely implemented by the baby-boomers after the 1st and 2nd world wars.
Flexible working options have been on the cards for a considerable time. The pandemic has simply driven home the point that, with modern technology, working remotely is doable for many jobs, employees and companies. It can be done.
Working as a specialised service on your own, has also grown in popularity. Services once organised from a mainstream office can now be outsourced to singular specialists who can produce the work faster and often more efficiently from anywhere in the world. Companies are gradually coming to grips with these new types of working structures.
The 9 – 5 workday is dead
Are the traditional 9 – 5 jobs an outdated holdover from the industrial age? It seems, thanks to technology and the rise of more free-spirited, tech-savvy people, workers are taking greater control of their careers and their lives. Companies are revising their workplace policies to create a more hybrid culture that allows the best workplace from anywhere for both local and global teams.
Until comparatively recently in history, many office workers and other employees had little choice but to go to a workplace outside the home to access the equipment and technology necessary to do their jobs. Once there, they were expected to toil for a set number of hours.
But thanks to technology like smartphones and laptops, our brains are undergoing profound neurological changes that are freeing us up to think differently about a number of things, including work. Some even say that our brains are changing because of the amount of information that is to hand, at our fingertips, all the time. It means we no longer have to memorise as much as before: telephone numbers are available at the touch of a button; road map directions likewise. Our brains are liberated from a host of clutter.
Work schedules will become more fluid. Working is going into freefall – and perhaps for some, a little out of control. But the dye has been set for greater choice. This may not suit everyone, but the options are opening up, and it heralds a beginning that will inevitably influence how the future will pan out. Perhaps we are not far from the point when we might truly say: ‘What’s a weekend?’
Success will still depend on results, productivity, value, deadline efficiency, work quality and getting work done – but the emphasis on being in a particular place, at particular times will diminish.
A world of new working habits
- Job-hopping is not new – and in fact has been punted consistently in the last 20 years as part of the new world of work. However, remote work may mean that you’re not ‘hopping’ at all but able to offer your skills and services to a range of employers at the same time. So instead of working a set number of years for one employer, you can be working for several from wherever you like, and for as long as you like. The notion of one job for life has more or less vanished, along with the long term security that used to go with it.
- Work is more and more often found on a contract or freelance basis. What matters in a transforming workplace is transferable skills as you move from job to job. Technical skills feature high, but then so do soft skills such as communications and creativity. The right qualifications for skills in demand must feature in prospective educational choices.
- The 9 – 5 route is no guarantee for efficiency, productivity, or employee happiness. Firstly, there is more cognisance today of the fact that humans aren’t machines. Hence the welcome arrival of Artificial Intelligence. Not every person’s rhythms and the skills mesh well with a traditional 9 – 5 work schedule. While a hard worker may always be in line for success, traditional schedules tend to squash skills such as innovation and teamwork.
- In the old days, clocking in and out on time was key to a job, but office hours are no longer seen as the most important part of a job. This is especially the case for creative people. Flexibility allows people to do their best work at times that best suit them. And there is plenty of evidence that benefits for staff will equal benefits for the company. Flexibility is proving positive and essential for success. In fact, there is evidence that more hours you work, the less productive you may become.
- Motivation is always improved if one is happy. When people have time for a personal life—to pursue hobbies, invest in relationships, take care of personal issues, and get a good night’s sleep—they’ll be better workers as a result, more focused and more time-management efficient.
With freelancing and self-employment on a steep upward curve, companies need to consider how they will recruit, train, and retain workers. After all, if people are going to work 24/7 anyway, why not let them do it for themselves? Time doesn’t really matter, it’s what can be accomplished in any given period of time that truly matters. And that’s the mindset we’re taking home.
Empfin Solutions – the team that keeps your team happy
We’re an Old Mutual franchise with our primary focus on the three main areas of concern in everybody’s financial planning.
- Your Company benefits – advising on, and servicing umbrella pension and provident funds.
- Your Personal financial planning and provision – Estate planning, Wealth Creation and Retirement Planning
- You Assets – motor and household insurance.
Always striving to be a trusted partner in facilitating financial solutions for organisations and individuals, our dedicated team of fully accredited, experienced professionals have a passion for satisfying customer needs and providing a truly client-centric service.
Find out how you can benefit at: www.empfinsolutions.co.za
