Gaming Sets Kids up for a Post-Office World

Welcome Back

I hope those of you who read the interview piece last week enjoyed! I’ve decided to focus on publishing at least twice a month, allowing myself some breaks in-between to ensure my writing stays enjoyable and higher quality.

I’ve been reading a lot recently about how commercial office real estate values are collapsing, and found myself thinking about how I’ve become accustomed to limited office time. Will the upcoming generation of kids be in a better position? Let’s dive in.

Enjoy this week’s post!

-Welty

Commercial Office Space is Collapsing

If you’ve looked at any headlines about real estate recently (it’s ok if you haven’t, it can be pretty boring), it’s apparent that we’re operating within a post-office world in the US. Anecdotally, a formerly $300m downtown San Francisco office building is now for sale at $60m. Nationally, office space vacancy rates are steadily increasing, with the national vacancy rate sitting at 20%, up 70% since 2019 according to JLL.

Smaller tech companies especially are abandoning their offices (Figure 1), even as some of the larger players like Meta and Amazon are bringing employees back to the office to justify their massive campuses. Furthermore, nearly every major industry has dramatically decreased their leasing activity, meaning they’re paying for less office space (Figure 2).

So, How Does this Relate to Kids and Gaming?

Among the individuals calling for a return to office, I see two core themes:

1) Deeply invested in commercial real estate (real estate executives, or large company executives at companies with a large office space footprint)

2) Older millennials, Gen Xers, or Baby Boomers. I mean, Martha Stewart calling for a return to office, are you kidding me?

Point 2 is particularly important here, as it describes a core generational difference that explains why there’s such a disconnect in comfort with non-office work. The above generations did not grow up in a world with technology that hyper connects individuals; much less engaged with online gaming at the same rates. As a result, younger Gen Z, and most likely the upcoming Generation Alpha, view digital mediums and gaming as a social activity. A recent survey conducted by Deloitte shows the disparity of this style of thinking across generations (Figure 3).

Younger generations seek social connection through digital experiences, and as a result, are better equipped for a post-office world of greater interaction over Zoom and quick chat messages. I believe that the 40% of Gen Z and Millennials who socialize more in video games than physically are greatly equipped for success in a post-office working environment.

My Own Experience with Gaming and Working in a Remote Environment

From a very young age, I’ve been a gamer. I started with browser games on the computer, began playing multiplayer games on a console, and ultimately wound up playing multiplayer games on my computer, which I still do to this day.

As a child, I interacted with players largely through chat messages in game. I genuinely learned to type on a keyboard fast this way. Once I was a bit older, and my parents were less terrified of my verbally chatting with “strangers”, I began communicating with my headset. In one of my favorite games, I played competitively on a team of like-minded gamers. We would join a voice server in a product called Mumble and communicate our tactics, as well as hang out when we were not practicing. A few years later, Discord launched, and social interaction while gaming became even easier. Dedicated servers for messaging, voice, and sharing video became common place. Through these experiences, I grew very comfortable communicating my thoughts and building genuine relationships without ever meeting people physically.

Fast-forward to today, and I have not yet had a job that wasn’t primarily remote. Every colleague, client, or customer I’ve worked with, I’ve primarily interacted and built a relationship with digitally. I do sometimes wish I spent more time with colleagues in-person, but I do not view this as a disadvantage to my career. I have a learned advantage in my ability to communicate digitally, and I’m confident it’s helped me continue to grow and develop despite having the physical connection that many older generations claim necessary for career development.

When I see statistics like 90% of American children play video games, I’m not scared they’ll never know how to interact and build relationships. I see a world where full-time offices are no longer necessary, and the future generation of professionals is set up to take full advantage of our increasingly digital work world.

Have additional thoughts? Connect with me on Twitter and let’s chat about it! Make sure to share with your friends too if you enjoyed.