Whilst the past year has seen a very heavy focus on one aspect of the change brought around during the pandemic as a major shift towards remote working has happened and perhaps lead to the permanent change for white collar jobs becoming more focussed on delivering more flexible remote options. But the other area that has been much less explored but just as important may be a shift for business as many may look to move toward a location independent style of operating, as business trends continue to change.
(Image from locationindie.com)
Location independent business has been on the rise for a number of years with the growth of different internet services as many here at digitalnomads.world have explored the many options that have become available – the ability to set-up an online business from anywhere without being reliant on physical ties to that one place have been key as social influencers, content creators, bloggers, and vloggers for example remain firmly toward the top of this list. Further areas in these spaces will continue to change moving forward too, but the next step may be for some major business to make the change where possible too, with little requirement to keep a permanent presence in one location as staff become more remote, it opens up the possibility for movement.
The big crux is that these types of businesses are largely centred around one individual and haven’t had much opportunity to thrive where more employees are required, and this will likely remain true moving forward too as individual business will still lead the way, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t other opportunities to be found. The next year or so will certainly be the most impactful here – things are certainly starting to look up as the news around vaccines and a slow path to recovery are filling many with hope – if business return to the ‘old’ normal and office spaces begin to fill once again and a more familiar return to work occurs, then it does limit opportunities for many to explore this newer method of working, but if the ‘new’ normal remains and remote working continues to be as popular, and as needed as it is now, then it won’t take long for a major shift to occur, and for that shift to remain popular.
Either way, this will be the inevitable direction for some to go – with the rate at which tech is changing and how quickly modern methods are being implemented, a singular physical presence in one location is becoming less required, and the big change will only occur once attitudes towards the change occurs – as such it’ll largely just be a matter of time, and not a matter of if. As more people explore the opportunities that are growing too, it could lead to these attitudes changing much quicker too, but only time will tell just how impactful this past year as whole has been, and how business as a whole will continue to react to these changes too.
