Today I went into the office.  I had one main reason for doing so; I wanted to catch up with some colleagues and thought we’d benefit from just hanging out in the same space.  My other, less positive reason though?  I hadn’t been in for a week or so and thought I probably ought to.  I could not really say why.  I guess no one wants to be that person do they?   The one that everyone thinks never bothers coming to the office. 

You have heard of presenteeism and leavism. Are we going to see yet another form of performative work in this new hybrid world?

1. You go into the office even though all your daily meetings are online and there is nothing that you specifically need to do there. 
2. You feel like you ought to go into the office because you are worried people will think you are avoiding people / avoiding coming in / shirking from home.
3. You go into the office even though no one that you need to collaborate with is there, and you spend the day sending emails and replying to messages (that you could have done from home).
4. You have set yourself a minimum standard of ‘days I need to be in the office’ which is not based on the actual work you need to do and where you can do it best.
5. You are worried that if you don’t go to the offices on a regular basis it will have negative implications for your career. 
6. You go in the office because your boss is in. 

This is a slightly tongue in cheek blog post – and yet underneath it there are some hard wired beliefs about work and what we have to do to be seen as a good worker.  Hybrid is not the answer to everything, despite the current hype. It does however have the power to improve some of the old problems associated work work and working lives. But not if we just create a whole new range of associated problems and brand new flex stigmas…. of which hybridteeism* is potentially one.

*patent pending 🙂