Personally, i don't miss going to the office in the slightest. Having to get up very early which in practice led to either not getting a lot done the previous evening or being sleep deprived. Having to get dressed a certain way to look presentable. Having to take public transportation for an hour as a commute, which i didn't exactly enjoy. Having to interact with people and attend meetings in a "formal" environment. Having essentially no privacy and feeling like i'm boxed in or judged in some ways. Having to look busy, instead of just being able to get things done and work on whatever that i desire. Being stuck in the dystopian landscape of a large city, sprawling with life, noise and pollution, whereas i'd much prefer my current countryside view instead - just being able to go outside and enjoy some peace and quiet, do some light exercise for a bit without getting weird looks, or just play with my dogs as a break that i wouldn't otherwise take.

And on the other end of the spectrum, there are people out there who feel absolutely suffocated by being stuck behind a screen and not being able to collaborate in the physical presence of others. The conversations, with all of their tiny details which get lost in text, voice or even video chats. Building rapport with others and getting to know them better, all of the spontaneous conversations that just don't happen at all. Even overhearing ones like that and learning more about what's going on in the company. And instead being stuck at home, in many situations even with noisy kids or a work environment that simply isn't good for their wellbeing in the longer term! They sometimes even see the days blending together and finding it harder to separate work from their private time.

The amount of empathy that i feel for these people is limited due to our personal differences, the same way that they don't necessarily imagine themselves putting themselves in the shoes of someone who hasn't felt one bit of discomfort at working remotely and finds social satisfaction elsewhere (online communities and enjoyment of video essays and such content in my case). The exact same way that for them working in the office just felt very normal and natural, it being their preferred way of getting things done. To me, it feels like those are just two very different types of people, regardless of their other qualities.

Neither of us are necessarily better in any way (unless you want to talk about what the majority of humanity is like and therefore which form of work it is better suited for), however those differences are where the problems will begin. Sooner or later, many will want to return to the office, while for others it will be a dealbreaker. In many cases, a particular type of work will be mandated "from above" and many employees will just decide to leave their companies and participate in a globalized economy instead... whilst taking all of their domain knowledge with themselves. A hot job market is probably overall a good thing, but knowing how much documentation and onboarding is lacking within the industry, i fear that there will be quite a few problematic situations to be encountered in the coming decade.

I actually summarized these thoughts in a blog post of my own as well: "Remote working and the elephant in the room".

Here's a link: https://blog.kronis.dev/articles/remote-working-and-the-elep...