Remote working, or ‘teleworking’, presents us with a huge opportunity. If the ability to work remotely means that we can potentially work from any location, then the opportunities are endless. It really does represent a world of possibilities for all of us as individuals operating within today’s modern workplace.
I am sure that history will record this present era of ‘digital revolution’ as comparable to that of the industrial revolution in the way that it has so fundamentally changed the world that we live in. This time of innovation is not only bringing about significant changes in the way that we work and communicate but, I believe, it is also bringing with it the bi-product of ‘lifestyle innovation’.
As with many innovations, it is often the bi-products that really catch on; texting was added to mobile phones just because it was there. The developers considered that nobody would use it; why would people type a message when they could speak to someone instead? How glad they were that they included the ability to text. In a similar way the digital infrastructure of modern office life was not set up to enable the ability to work remotely, but it has become a very positive and welcome bi-product from it.
When you are living in an era it is sometimes difficult to step outside of it and see how history will record it. This current time is certainly no different. We take each change in our stride and add it to the list of essentials in our lives. We get the latest technology because we feel we need to, but seldom do we take the time to actually consider the power of it, and how fundamentally it has changed our own lives and the world we live in.
Technology in itself is only ever a tool, and it’s our application of it that determines if the changes it enables are an improvement. As well as empowering us with new opportunities, technology has also simply repackaged the more trivial aspects of the human existence. It has brought about an increased ability to share some of our mundane experiences with the rest of the world. It has brought about increased consumer peer pressure; with the need for the latest phone replacing the need for the latest Nike trainers, and so on.
As with all change we can fight it, embrace it or, as is often the case; simply become a slave to it. If we follow wherever we are led by technology then it will probably empty our pockets, as it will generally be commerce that drives innovation. But it doesn’t have to be this way. The entrepreneurs over in Silicon Valley are not the only benefactors of this ‘digital revolution’. By harnessing technology proactively we have the opportunity to create the lifestyle of our dreams, while still doing our jobs. With a world of possibilities to discover how do you feel about becoming a pioneer of the digital revolution and a ‘lifestyle innovator’?