Social Isolation Due To Remote Working

Remote work is changing the workspace culture and it’s operations globally. In the wave of covid 19 pandemic remote work is rapidly increasing all around the world. There is significant rise in remote work among employees working part time or even full time. Even the tech giants like amazon, facebook, google , twitter etc. have told their employees to work from home and even quickly implementing the remote working policies in the US.

In the starting people were enjoying the remote working culture and were working with full enthusiasm as they were getting more flexible work options. But they were unaware about the another side of the this hot remote work. It gave lot of perks to the employees but it also came with fair share of challenges for them.

It was becoming very difficult for the employees to avoid the moments of isolation and loneliness with this work lifestyle. Most common problem that remote work caused is social isolation. As before the pandemic all the employees tend to spend most of the waking hours with colleagues and teammates.

Consequences or effects of social isolation

Social isolation became one of the biggest pitfalls faced by the remote worker. Employees lacked social support which is needed to stay motivated and engaged in work. Social isolation leads to chronic loneliness and boredom which in long enough can have detrimental effects on physical and mental being.

Social isolation causes adverse health consequences including depression, poor sleep quality, impaired executive function, accelerated cognitive decline, poor cardiovascular function and impaired immunity at every stage of life. Social isolation doubled the risk of early death. It is similar magnitude to that of obesity, smoking, lack of access to care and physical inactivity.

Sometimes some individuals lack encouragement from family or friends and they slide into unhealthy habits. Social isolation has been found to raise level of stress, anxiety and in turn, harm the body.

Combating social isolation or the way forward

First step in the journey is to transform this devious loneliness to solitude. Gain the ability to be at peace with oneself. Create a healthy relationship with one’s mind, heart, soul . This might be the best time to engage in long forgotten hobbies, neglected passions and unfulfilled dreams. Improving proximal bond with the family and loved ones is another opportunity. 3 golden tips to conquer social isolation:-

1. One day per week

Work at least one day in a week outside your home. Whether it’s coffee shop or park or nearby co working space. You can go to your friend’s house or even invite them to work together. Take the initiative and reach out to other remote workers in your locality.

2. Make a morning or evening meditation ritual

Meditation is the best ritual to combat anxiety, depression etc. its more useful if it is performed with a group. Organize a guided meditation session virtually with coworkers.

3. Talking more than just work with coworkers

There’s a habit in remote working culture that the communication between coworkers is less social and more formal. Have a safe zone to share a word about your family life and being supported by your work community to do so goes a long way towards feeling more connected to your coworkers.

Say yes to remote work culture and a hell no to social isolation

Create a work life balance and focus on mental and physical health. Make most out of your job flexibility and focus on learning new things and make a strong bond with family and loved ones. Even then also you feel lonely , just ping a colleague and talk about it.