24 Sep, 2020
American Workers Experiencing Work-From-Home Culture Shock
The Work-From-Home culture is creating a whole new set of risks, threats and opportunities, and will prove to be a double-edged sword for Travel & Tourism. Traffic rush-hours may become a thing of the past but corporate espionage will become a piece of cake.
MINNEAPOLIS, 21 September 2020, BUSINESS WIRE – Today, EPIC unveiled the results of a national survey it conducted to understand how Americans are faring in the new work-from-home environment that is dominating 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While it’s no surprise that two-thirds (66%) of work from homers (WFHers) are feeling some degree of burnout, the findings also show that nearly one-third (32%) have thought about doing something completely different professionally.
EPIC Infographic (Graphic: Business Wire)
One clear takeaway of the research: taking personal breaks led to increased happiness and productivity.
However, of those workers who are staying home, many survey respondents are finding it exceptionally difficult to unplug in this new environment.
- 75% feel the need to answer emails or calls immediately, and three out of five workers feel “stuck” to their computer.
- Millennials reported the highest rate of burnout at 72%, while 55% of Boomers don’t feel guilty stepping away.
On the contrary, nearly three-quarters of those who report higher levels of happiness (72%) and productivity (73%) while working from home feel they have more time to improve themselves and learn new skills. What respondents are snacking on during those breaks also makes a difference. Those who are happier working from home are 43% more likely to currently eat healthy snacks.
“If you don’t take a break, you’ll break, that’s what I’ve found,” said Ryan Holiday, an American wellness guru. “Like everyone else, I’m spending a lot more time at home, but that doesn’t mean I’m not working. Maybe I’m even working harder than before because there are less distractions. It’s almost more important to take deliberate moments to relax, to recharge, do something different. For me, I get up from my desk, go downstairs, grab a snack, walk around and then I get back to it.”
“At EPIC, we understand the desire for achievement and stretching to reach that next goal. But we also recognize that refueling and reengaging are critical to getting there,” said Kate Herbert, Senior Manager, Brand Experience at EPIC. “Our hope is to inspire WFHers to break up their workdays by building in moments to invest in themselves– whether that’s taking back their old commute time to listen to a podcast, fitting in a quick walk or enjoying an EPIC snack. Many folks just power through back-to-back days, and we’ve uncovered some simple ways to increase overall happiness.”
As part of his partnership with EPIC, Holiday will be encouraging workers to #TakeAnEPICBreak during the week of September 21 on his Instagram (@ryanholiday). Find more information and follow along on EPIC’s social media accounts at @Epicbar.
METHODOLOGY
The above results are from an online national survey of 1,000 U.S. adults working from home full time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Those who completed the survey are employed full-time and did not previously work from home full-time prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey was fielded from July 24 to August 6, 2020, with a margin of error of +/-3.1% for the national sample.
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