Do Zoombies pose a bigger threat than COVID-19?

After months of working from home, we are all very much overstretched. Newspaper headlines claim; ‘Loneliness is overpowering people working from home’, ‘We are all turning into ‘digital factory workers’’ and ‘Over half of the youngsters are anxious and stressed due to COVID-19’.

Although some companies view working from home as a huge opportunity, there is a latent risk lurking around the corner. Initially, research (Dutch research here) showed managers were mostly worried about the productivity and engagement of their employees. Overtime and loneliness were far less relevant topics. Today, these psychological consequences turnout to be much more daunting.

The average employee is slowing turning into a Zoombie. Every day I talk to people who are glued to their screen from early morning to late evening. Switching from one conversation to another, non-stop. Sitting in the same chair, in the same room. Without any type of physical exercise, interaction or communication.

The fear of COVID-19, being uncertain about your job or lacking physical contact has caused a lot of employees to continuously experience a sense of stress. As a result, they created a tunnel vision and are no longer able to think straight.

Mostly, you’d turn to the most obvious fixes. I this case you’d work even harder because at least you know that is what’s expected of you. As long as you are visible, your boss cannot judge you for not working hard enough.

During the crisis things are often very hectic, leaving not much time for personal attention. Video calls are almost always about work. Our conversations are becoming more and more superficial. We dread that someone will start replying honestly and share how they’re really doing. The mere thought is already overwhelming.

This is causing a lack of Vitamine A (attention). Even though we need this now more than ever. Without this attention, another essential part of our well-being vanishes as snow in summer: Trust. The absence of trust brings about another enormous load of negative stress. Spiralling us down until hitting rock bottom.

It is to be expected this will lead to trouble. Recent research supports this. Many employees are at high risk of calling in sick due to burn-out related symptoms. In some countries even up to half of the working population. This lockdown could be causing your company and employees more hardship than you’ve bargained for.

My advice:

• Stop Zooming all the time (or any other video conferencing tool for that matter). Make sure to swap digital sessions for regular phone calls from time to time. And do so while walking, preferably outside. Exercise and fresh air will benefit both your body and your brain.
• Try changing scenery during the day whenever possible and don’t stay in the same chair and room all day long.
• Make sure your meetings are 50 minutes max instead of 60. This way, you will have the opportunity to stretch your legs, drink some water and re-activate your brain before your next task.
• Properly finish your working day at the end of the day. Turn everything off. Clean up your stuff so the kitchen table is again just the kitchen table. There is no commute anymore, so go play with your kids or run an errand, change your mind.
• Do something kind for another. Even when you’re at a distance. This will stimulate your brain in the same positive way it would when actually seeing the person you’re helping.
• Generate positive energy. A great example of this is the rapping school teacher Mister Martijn. He created a TikTok account during the first lockdown so he could stay in touch with his students.
• Stop following the (mostly negative) news all the time. You are not going to change anything about it anyway.

The question is whether the lockdown benefits outweigh the costs, but for now we will have to deal with it. So take the opportunity working from home is offering you in the sense of more flexibility, less travel time and more ownership over your work. Focus on the positive. Because, in the end, this won’t be our last crisis. Hang in there.

If you want to read more, do follow me on LinkedIn, Hidde de Vries.