It feels like we talk about work more than ever, but also that we’re ever more unsure what to think about it. I suppose the two go together: if we had reached a serene consensus about the space it should occupy in our lives and souls, we would just get on with it. Instead, bewilderingly contradictory takes on the philosophy of work are everywhere, flowering and fading as fast as TikTok microtrends.
For instance: the Washington Post declared this week that, like high heels, sleeping in the office is “making a comeback”. This in response to Elon Musk’s blowhard demand that staff sign up to work like dogs or ship out (followed, of course, by the inevitable backtrack when many reportedly chose the far-more-attractive ship out option).
