Evolving Past the Big City Mindset
Pandemic Survival Guide, Vol. 1, Chapter 2
Forcing the entire world to go ‘remote’ has shown us we don’t need to be in skyscrapers to do our jobs. What could the world look like if we changed how we think about cities?
I’ve been a long-time advocate of the notion that those who can work remotely should embrace it where it makes sense. Lots of people, especially those of us who work in IT, have proven over and over and over again that we don’t have to be physically seated at our corporate “lunch tables” (I mean open concept desks) to get work done and communicate with our teams.
We’re in a moment where companies have been forced to fortify their VPN offerings and to provide a secure, telecommuting option (some with contracted agreements) in order to keep their lights on. A lot of leaders who have stood up to tout Agility as the new way to improve their business models now must actually put that into practice. These are great examples of how adapting and improving are the only ways a company can move forward. It’s real, it’s messy, and it is how any other real transformation is birthed — through necessity and the unshakable resolve that it’s do or die.
The question is now so loud it demands an answer: Do we really need to drive an hour to a building, pay parking, and sit in an area on top of each other in order to do work to add to a company’s bottom line?
Gizmodo’s excellent article below outlines many things to consider in this moment regarding the way we worked before COVID-19 and how we can work after the restrictions lift.
What would it look like if we reframe the way we think about cities?
What would it look like if we reframe the way we think about cities? What would happen if we intentionally make our cities less densely populated and create more sprawl? It will begin with asking ourselves why societies moved to big cities in the first place.
- One of the main reasons cities were formed was to allow farmers to go to market and set up lines of trade.
- These markets then became the centers for other traders and merchants, providing other ways to create valuable things to sell.
- Cities reduced transportation costs for goods, people, and ideas by bringing them all together in one spot. Co-location allowed the creation of economies of scale, saving time and money.
We are now living in a time where these things are rendered nearly obsolete, or they can be if we want them to be. Our lock-down proves it. We really don’t need central meccas to survive, we just need to embrace the services we offer each other while leveraging technology that has proven itself stable. Since I’ve been writing this article, I’ve ordered lunch from a local restaurant and I’ve purchased Easter basket supplies and a few missing items from my household for delivery this evening. The people who will be delivering these things to me are mobile and not in an office building somewhere downtown. I’m keeping my child safe, I’m able to work, and I’m leveraging distribution channels that have taken center stage all while supporting the local community I’m in.
Of course there are reasons co-location is successful. Being together to solve issues is without a doubt the easiest and most natural for us to accomplish this. We can more easily observe non-verbal cues and experience more complete communication with others. But some of the needs here never took into consideration that high concentrations of people in a place create bottom-line risk past just getting a few people sick with the flu.
All of us right now were born into a society where big city rule is the norm. Our usual ways of operating are conducive to it, including management styles straight out of the second and third industrial revolutions. I’m just suggesting we can embrace this shift and initiate the next stage of our evolution in this manner while we continue to be the chosen participants of the 4th industrial revolution. We will need that more than ever to help rebuild our economy. Businesses, too, can take a step back and start to honestly consider that their brick-and-mortar presence in densely populated areas is more about conditioning and less about essential requirements for operating.
I am a Native Houstonian and live in just north of Houston, the unchallenged winner in the category of ‘Big 4 city with worst urban sprawl.’ I love this city and the fact that we are truly our own thing. We’ve been dealing with distribution needs and disconnects longer and more frequently than other cities with small-knit communities. We are also the proud overcomers of having Hurricane Harvey hit our city and then pretty much picking up like nothing much happened. I’m proud to be in and from a place that is known for its grit, its tenacity, and it’s ability to just get shit done without complaint. I nominate Houston to rethink our traditional Oil & Gas reality and pioneer new ways to thrive.
