Not everyone will be successful with the transition to work-from-home. Some careers will stall in a post-quarantine world in the same way that the careers stalled during the transition to computer-oriented or collaboration-oriented work.

Quarantine accelerated the evolution of work and changed of the factors on which we compete. Those changes are permanent. Knowledge work now and in the future will be characterized by:

• Work from home:
  • Ability to focus on work while at home
  • Ability to work independently, without your mom watching
  • Have physical offices, personal lives, living situations that facilitate focus
• Remote collaboration:
  • Ability to participate effectively in an online meeting
  • Ability to contribute to the collaborative development of work product.
  • Ability to effect change without physical interaction
• Leadership and Teaming
  • Ability to bond with a team remotely
  • Ability to inspire and lead people who never meet physically
  • Ability to communicate up and down the chain
• Computer skills (obviously)
• Network / Relationships
  • Ability to remain present in a dispersed company
  • Ability to connect with customers and professionals outside of the company

Those who master these skills will excel past those who do not.