Lately, I’ve been contemplating the role our workplace culture plays in our overall wellbeing, not just physically and emotionally, but socially too. In that thinking, I’ve coined the term: ‘isologenic’.
‘Iso’ meaning isolation, ‘genic’ meaning producing or causing. ‘Isologenic’ referring to something that causes or produces isolation.
How isologenic is your workplace culture?
Is Your Office a Space for Connection?
For a long time, the office was the centre of workplace culture, but as many organisations moved toward hybrid or remote-first models, we’ve had to revisit what the office is actually for.
To me, offices should be reimagined as places for collaboration, creativity, and meaningful connection. They should not be places we drag ourselves to just to be seen, to tick a box, or that feel isolating, even when you’re surrounded by people.
Yet, this is often what seems to be happening in modern work cultures. You commute in, find a hot desk, put on noise-cancelling headphones, and don’t speak to anyone all day. Or, you sit through back-to-back meetings with little space for connection or deep work.
That’s the paradox: a space designed to bring us together can disconnect us even more.
The Hybrid Working Paradox: Autonomy vs. Connection
Remote and hybrid working has unlocked enormous autonomy and flexibility for many, which is a good thing – autonomy is a key driver of wellbeing and motivation.
But there is a catch.
Human beings are wired for connection. While autonomy can fuel performance, it’s connection that sustains us, buffering us against burnout, loneliness, and disengagement.
The balance between autonomy and connection is what I’ve started calling ‘the hybrid paradox’. Too much autonomy, without enough connection, can feel isolating; too much connection, without autonomy, can feel draining and stifling.
The sweet spot sits somewhere in the middle and is different for everyone.
What Is the Role of Work Culture?
Your workplace culture should be your anchor, and if we’re not intentional, culture can become isologenic. This doesn’t just affect morale, it affects performance, creativity, collaboration, retention…everything!
So the question I want to leave you with is: how isologenic is your working culture?
And, as importantly: what can you do to shift it?
Whether creating more intentional opportunities for connection, rethinking how and when you gather in-person, or making space for people to ask each other how they’re really doing, every small step matters.
We all need connection, so let’s make sure our cultures reflect that.
Interested in sharing this message with your team?
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