BY BRADEN HOLECEK
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Change is never easy. And during these difficult times, the general public is adjusting to a new normal.
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When the coronavirus started to take over, businesses were affected just as much as any entity. Many people learned they would now be working from home for the foreseeable future.
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What did that mean logistically? How about financially? Those businesses were going to have to adjust on the fly, just as much as their employees.
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\u201cHow are we going to get the work that needed to be done to students, in my case,\u201d said Kevin Kohls, a teacher at Kansas City Piper. \u201cHow were we going to answer questions if they didn\u2019t understand the work?\u201d
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Kohls has taught at Kansas City Piper for roughly 20 years. But he has never had to experience anything like this.
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Meanwhile Andrew Kohls and Jameson Sedlacek, who both work for service departments at Kansas State University, had mixed reactions to the stay-at-home orders.
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Andrew Kohls is a senior assistant director for the Kansas State Career Center. Sedlacek is director of communications services at the Kansas State University Foundation.
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They already have a large sum of individuals who they are involved with daily. So this change was bringing on new challenges, in different areas.
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\u201cMy first reaction at first was this might be fun,\u201d Sedlacek said. \u201cBut then I realized, it might not be.\u201d
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For Andrew Kohls, he was \u201ckind of angry\u201d at first.
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\u201cI decided that it would be a good idea to take all of Spring Break off,\u201d he said. \u201cI took off just for vacation. I was mad that I didn\u2019t work on campus that week, knowing that we\u2019d be working at home for months.\u201d
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Looking back, he was crushed, and then the realization set in.
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\u201cJust trying to get used to the new setup and everything, and then just nervous about the first couple of days,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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When this adjustment to working from home came to fruition, there were also mixed feelings on organization, compared to feeling out of sorts.
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\u201cSince most of what we\u2019re doing is digital, it\u2019s not too bad staying organized,\u201d Kevin Kohls said. \u201cBut there are times when I want to grab something to add to an assignment or work. I don\u2019t have it because I can\u2019t get into my work building.\u201d
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For Sedlacek, staying organized is not necessarily hard. However, he says there are so many different levels of communication, so he has to work harder at it.
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This involves email, messaging, working on Teams or using a specific software from Kansas State University.
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\u201cOne day, I was trying to find a message, and I went through three or four of those places just to find it,\u201d Sedlacek said. \u201cEverything is much more intentional now.\u201d
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This change was not as difficult for Andrew Kohls. His department already used Slack messaging and Zoom to communicate.
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\u201cJust becoming more adept at using that was important. But, where do we find doing what we need to do to feel more accomplished,\u201d he said.
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Productivity was the main question for how Andrew Kohls was feeling moving forward.
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While this has been a difficult, hectic change of events, there have been positives.
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\u201cIt\u2019s been nice to be able to take projects I\u2019ve been doing in the classroom and change them into digital projects instead,\u201d Kevin Kohls said. \u201cIt\u2019s also been nice to have more time to work on projects and develop them and refine them more.\u201d
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Andrew Kohls\u2019 outlook has greatly changed. For an outgoing person, he has a new love for remote working, so to speak.
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\u201cNow that I have my routine, I have all my same tools,\u201d he said. \u201cI kind of enjoy it. Now, I can encourage other students to (work remotely) more.\u201d
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On the other hand for Sedlacek, \u201cthere is a greater sense of empathy for each other.\u201d
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\u201cEverybody has different situations at home,\u201d he said. \u201cIt requires understanding, and if anything, it\u2019s brought us together.\u201d
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\u201cI want to go to the office and have somewhere to go everyday,\u201d Sedlacek said. \u201cI need that social environment.\u201d
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\u201cNot being able to answer questions when people don\u2019t understand the work they\u2019re supposed to do directly and quickly\u201d has been a challenge, Kevin Kohls said.
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Making the remote-working transition more smoothly has had to be one of the biggest challenges businesses or places of work have faced with their employees.
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\u201cThey have kept us informed and they have made sure we understand how to use digital communication like Zoom,\u201d Kevin Kohls said. \u201cThey\u2019ve been communicating to the stakeholders, which in my case are our parents, to make sure they understand what\u2019s expected of them and their students.\u201d
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Both Andrew Kohls and Sedlacek do not have to deal with students in that way — though, the biggest hurdle has been co-workers.
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\u201cThey\u2019re overcommunicating to make sure we\u2019re at ease,\u201d Sedlacek said. \u201cThey showed a new set of values, which dispelled our fears. Also, the IT staff has done a lot to make everyone\u2019s experience go as smooth as possible.\u201d
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Andrew Kohls said they were lucky. Early on, the order changed so much so quickly.
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\u201cI think it could have been better transitioning than it was,\u201d he said. \u201cI had another monitor at home, so that was helpful for me.
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\u201cMy department did send Amazon microphones and headsets to our houses. They have also conducted meetings to continually check in and update our calendars. I do know that others wish they had a second monitor or ergonomic chair at home.\u201d
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Adjusting to working from home has brought on new ways of life.
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\u201cI\u2019m working more in solitaire instead of with a group of people,\u201d Kevin Kohls said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s meant maybe being a little more lenient or understanding with the projects they\u2019re doing.\u201d
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\u201cIt has also meant that I\u2019ve got to be very thorough and precise when I\u2019m assigning work to do,\u201d Kevin Kohls said.
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The ebb and flow of the daily routine has been altered.
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\u201cStructurally, my daily routine has drastically changed,\u201d Sedlacek said. \u201cNot having that 8 to 5 and then clock out schedule, means I can take time to go outside with my cats. You\u2019re used to being in this one spot at this certain time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cI\u2019m not a morning person,\u201d he said. \u201cI can get up and things are a lot more leisurely. I can get coffee and not feel as stressed as just getting to work.\u201d
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The effects from the pandemic have brought on different views.
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\u201cSo it\u2019s been nice to have a little more freedom and latitude and time to build on the work I need to do,\u201d Kevin Kohls said.
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\u201cI can offer feedback more immediately to the work that\u2019s being done.\u201d
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Sedlacek hopes to one day return to the workplace in person.
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\u201cI want that place to go and communication that comes with everybody being in the same place,\u201d he said.
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Andrew Kohls wouldn\u2019t mind going back to work. On the other hand, \u201cI\u2019m honestly OK with working from home. I\u2019m enjoying it.\u201d
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He would prefer an alteration to what he had before and what there is now.
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\u201cI would like a mix or split schedule,\u201d he said. \u201cI really think that this was the push that businesses and companies needed to move to the next level.\u201d
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