Nostalgic about fun coffee break conversations? Escape remote working blues with our top 5 communication insights

The world of work has changed; no longer can you stop by at a colleagues’ workstation to chat about the new series you recently started watching or catch up over a quick bite after work.

Remember, back in February 2020 when it was so easy to bump into new people in the office corridors? We used to amuse our colleagues with quips, share experiences and catch a few laughs in between. Such a simple time that was!

Working from home over the past year has brought with it many challenges but what we all miss the most is that 2 minute trip to the coffee machine that inevitably turned into a gripping 20 minute debate on where to order lunch from. Moments like those often brought a special spark into the workday and kept us feeling energised.

Over time we have (have we?) somehow managed to find a balance when it comes to reaching deadlines, conducting meetings, and organising workflows. Tools such as Whatsapp, Slack, Emails, Discord and Zoom have helped us hold down the fort during this difficult period when it comes to professional communication. But what about casual conversations?

When and why did we stop making an effort to save Jack from becoming a dull boy?

We at Sparklin noticed these trends and decided to conduct a survey to measure these qualitative phenomena and bring back the ‘element of fun’. We found that more than 50% of employees across industries reported that working from home had compelled them to prioritise improving their communication skills. They all witnessed higher productivity, higher ability to be in a state of flow and more energy to take on hobbies as well. Surprisingly, however, the thing most people struggled to do was to prioritise having fun at work — and this has led to a gross misbelief that communication overall is suffering!

Having identified what was going wrong, we wanted to help fix it. In this blog post we bring to you our top 5 simple yet effective tips that will guarantee a boost to casual interactions, even when your day is overflowing with deliverables and meetings:

1. Think of Communication as a Currency

Just as currency is typically made up of different denominations, communication too, needs to be diversified. If we spend our whole day communicating solely work-related agendas, we are likely to feel unfulfilled with the returns.

We talked to Chetan Kapoor, the Head of Product at Sparklin, who shed light on his belief that for effective communication between two people, they both need to believe in the common value of their ‘currency’.

Chetan attributed a major part of his successful communication to being transparent in his work, documenting as often as possible and assuming positive intent even in unfavourable circumstances. Most importantly though, Chetan stressed the importance of actively encouraging informal communication with colleagues for higher productivity.

As an employee what can you do to ensure you get your daily dosage of chit-chats, you ask?

Schedule unscheduled fun by creating a coffee room on Discord where people can enter and leave as they please.

Ping colleagues randomly during the day and have a quick discussion on something that’s neither urgent nor important.

Put ‘chat time’ on your daily To-Do List.

Share funny stories about working from home to humanise conversations. Mom screaming your embarrassing nickname while you’re in a meeting, anybody?

These are some ideas, figure out what works for you and make it happen!

2. Extend your newly acquired communication skills to friends as well

The lockdown finally made us read articles and self-help books to arm ourselves with the best communication tactics. It’s a good idea to extend these learnings to interpersonal relationships as well.

Best practices such as ‘listen, listen, listen’ or ‘sometimes it’s better to pick up the phone’ or ‘know who you’re talking to’ can really help when you’re trying to get to know a new colleague or be there for a work-pal on a bad day.

We have to be more conscious now than ever of communicating holistically since screens can often intercept emotion. Amping up team huddles and adding more bonding activities, celebrations and get-togethers to each day, are so much more important than we recognise.

3. Maximise technology

Certain mobile apps have been gaining popularity because they aid in mimicking the magic of the office space. Coffitivity, for example, plays white sounds of office chatter or elevator music and has become an increasingly used tool amongst employees.

Some other tools such as “Serene” are being considered helpful to cut out distractions at home and complete tasks faster. “Zen”, an app that promotes a relaxing and colourful break time, is also used widely by people who feel they forget to take breaks during the day.

These tools not only lighten the atmosphere but also make everyone happier and we all know — a happy worker is a productive worker!

4. Champion human centricity within your organisation

Imagine what working remotely at a workplace that values openness, freedom, optimism, authenticity and compassion would look like. Do they appreciate those who uplift others? Are they invested in the well-being of employees? Is enabling employees their top priority?

In our conversation with Chetan, he pointed out that organisations where cultural values are explicitly defined, clear mechanisms for such values are lived at all levels and water-cooler conversations encouraged are the ones most equipped to help employees overcome burnout — and we couldn’t agree more!

At Sparklin, remote work led us to start office rituals like Mehfil (Friday night plans for unlimited banter) and Ask Me Anything (almost ‘anything’ anything). We also leaned into festivals, birthdays and farewells in a big way. Some other organisations have been giving out gift hampers on festivals, organising games for employees and even holding team lunch calls.

In essence, it’s a good idea to lend a listening ear to the real humans on the inside and help your organisation actively reimagine exceptional experiences for your own distinct company culture. It’s true that the customer experience and the employee experience are inextricably linked!

5. Use your flexibility to your advantage

All said and done, we agree that having the freedom to work at your own pace and in your own space is simply the best! #Workfromhomeisnotsobad

Remote working has not only given us the chance to pursue hobbies or to spend time with family members but most importantly to work in our pyjamas! Yes, it was a challenging shift at the start but we are now equipped to focus on the bright side.

Being able to work without friendly office distractions (you know who you are) has two main advantages — one, you get to focus on work when it’s important and hence end up being highly productive and two, you also get to control when you don’t want to be productive and need a break.

Working from home just didn’t bring us an array of challenges but also presented us with more than a zillion opportunities. Irrespective of where you are sitting — Malaysia, India, Bora Bora, Ecuador or Iceland, you can work for a company located anywhere around the world.

Many companies including the likes of Spotify, Atlassian, Coinbase, have already embraced the ‘new normal’ and are allowing their employees to work from home (read: anywhere) indefinitely. This means that you can bid goodbye to your geographical limitations and visa issues and apply for that dream role in the most deserving company.

P.S. This means you don’t have to give up on your travelling, and can even work from Bali, with just your laptop by your side!

Merit, wherever it arises, will be rewarded as never before. In an environment where the greatest source of wealth will be the ideas you have in your head rather than physical capital alone, anyone who thinks clearly will potentially be rich. The Information Age will be the age of upward mobility. It will afford far more equal opportunity for the billions of humans in parts of the world that never shared fully in the prosperity of industrial society.

— The Sovereign Individual, first published in 1997

Remember, sometimes you can have your cake and eat it too!