Becoming a hermit

While there's a lot I like about not working from home, there are a few things I've struggled with. Having to be up and out of the house by 7am is one of the most significant. But almost equally challenging has been trying to figure out how to work most effectively in an open-plan office. Don't misunderstand me - my colleagues are universally great, the physical working environment is well designed and the atmosphere is relaxed but intentional.

But I'm an introvert who, over the last ten years, has got used to working alone! In the first couple of weeks in the office I felt self-conscious just checking my emails. The biggest challenge I've faced, though, has been around finding space for strategic thinking.

Working at home, I liked nothing better than to get out piles of paper (printed on one side and saved from the recycling bin, of course) and a packet of fat marker pens, and lay on the floor scribbling away to my heart's content. It's an approach that works brilliantly in a lounge when you're working in your pyjamas but it doesn't really translate to an office environment!

And given that my role is a strategic development one, this has been a bit of a problem. I've tried just sitting at my desk with some bits of paper but that simply doesn't work. I've tried just working on the computer, but that's even worse. A couple of times I've thought about using one of the rooms in the office suite but couldn't quite bring myself to do it - surely only really important people are allowed to work outside the actual office?

But today I bit the bullet...and it was a revelation. OK, so I had to pass on the pyjamas and lying on the floor, but there were marker pens and paper and I discovered that the large table in the middle of the room is a great space for a kind of large scale spider diagram. In fact, my hour in the morning was so productive that I went back for another hour and a half this afternoon!

Interestingly, the room I booked is called the Hermitage. I certainly found it a great place to get away from it all and think. I might even go back tomorrow.