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Going into the fall, we still have a lot of adapting to do. Businesses, just like parents, have to adapt and rely more on technology to stay connected at a distance. In many ways, they also have to learn how to let go. When a business has good technology in place, from a secure VPN to secure remote server access, and they have tools to track productivity, it becomes easier to maintain that distance. Employees and students have to maintain personal responsibility. They have adapted to not having someone looking over their shoulders and not having someone nearby they can rely on for support. Again, they can lean into technology to find new ways to stay connected. Apps like Slack and Zoom do make a difference. We’ve all had to innovate over the last several months. It’s made us more efficient and, going forward, we’ll be in a better place. We’ll adapt.
California called Prodoscore tracked their employees’ productivity over the last several months and found they were, on average, 47% more productive at home versus in the office. This lines up with older studies about working from home showing that it’s good for productivity! In general, there are fewer distractions at home than at work. It’s easier for someone working at home to focus on what needs to get done and stay focused. They aren’t dealing with phones going off in the background or people coming up to them throughout the day — two things that can be very distracting. Here’s another thing: Employees don’t behave dramatically differently working at home versus working in the office. If you have a dedicated employee who keeps their nose to the grindstone and always gets things done, they’ll carry over that work ethic when working at home. In fact, they’ll probably be even better at their job because of fewer distractions, and they don’t have to commute!
technology. While apps like Slack, Google Hangouts, and Zoom are great (and have been put through their paces in recent months), it’s not the same as having someone right next to you can talk with. Even school systems are having to figure things out, much like businesses. Many of them had to put together a new business model in preparation for the 2020–2021 school year. They want to make sure their students and staff have the option to learn and teach from home. For many districts, education is getting a big overhaul. One of the challenges faced by businesses, schools, and students alike is the fact most people aren’t used to working from home or distance learning. Because of this, there has been a lot of concern about productivity. Businesses are worried their employees won’t be working as hard. Parents and educators are worried students won’t learn as effectively. Interestingly enough, several studies have found working from home boosts productivity. A company in
–Chuck Mosca
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The Most Famous Art Heist You’ve Never Heard Of
One hundred and nine years ago this month, one man — or was it three? — fled from the Louvre Museum in Paris, carrying what would quickly become the world’s most famous painting: Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa.” Historical accounts of the theft agree only on who was the ringleader: 30-year-old Louvre handyman Vincenzo Peruggia. At some point on Aug. 21, 1911, Peruggia lifted the glass case he himself had constructed to house the “Mona Lisa” and stole the painting. Some versions of the story say Peruggia was assisted by two brothers, fellow Italian handymen Vincenzo and Michele Lancelotti. Peruggia successfully spirited the painting back to his one-bedroom apartment, where it lay concealed in a false-bottomed trunk for more than two years. Peruggia was eventually caught attempting to sell the painting in Italy and spent eight months in jail.
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