I was fascinated by the recent "time-theft" ruling: Working from home? Experts say trust is key after ‘time theft’ ruling. Over the past few years, I have been tracking the work from home culture that has overtaken the US workforce and have been convinced it was only a matter of time before employers started to demand productivity or lay-off headcount to recession-proof.
Some people I know are straight up moonlighters that take advantage of every ounce of trust given to them. Others are often well-intentionally dressed in balance, rest, parenting, and mental health; the reality is their job often doesn't get done. There is absolutely no way America can compete with BRICS+ with this approach to work. We will lose to people like this who are producers:
I love to work in person, and I believe in Proverbs 10:4, "Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.". As a matter of fact, I naturally wake up at 4am ready to get after it...likely the Viking agricultural and trading DNA running in my veins and I agree with Bob Iger (Disney), Jane Fraser (Citi), Larry Fink (BlackRock), James Gorman (Morgan Stanley), etc. who all have concluded that working from home "has not worked."
Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Disney
Looks like days of watching a Netflix movie on your couch while doing laundry and answering emails on your smartphone are coming to an end, as they should. If you don't own the business and/or aren't on the hook for the fiduciary responsibility of the company, you are literally stealing from the people who are if you aren't pulling your weight. And shout-out to the people who over perform! Also, people like computer programmers, writers, etc. should be exempt from this as they produce best in isolation, commuting is a waste of time, and you want that guy with blasting Thievery Corporation at 3am to maximize output.
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