Work is a Verb

A weekly(ish) newsletter by

Jim's take

Let's address the elephant in the room: Work isn't always a verb. At least, not according to Merriam-Webster. It's primarily a noun that we've commandeered into verb duty, like how we "Slack" someone or “adult”. Language evolves because humans need it to, and that's exactly what's happening to work itself.

At Remotivated, we fundamentally believe that work isn’t a place you go- it’s something you do with passion and purpose. It's not the hours you log, but the problems you solve. That's why we chose "Work is a Verb" as the name for this newsletter. Because in these turbulent times we need to remember that our values and actions, not our surroundings, are what defines us.

And yes, I'll admit: there's a tiny spark of joy in imagining remote work critics pushing up their glasses to lecture me about grammar. Sometimes the best way to make a point is to break a rule or two.

Every week, the “Work is a Verb” newsletter will explore how the best remote-first companies are rewriting the rules of work. We'll celebrate the organizations that understand that trust isn't built by badge swipes, and culture isn't contained within office walls. We'll share stories of companies that measure output instead of occupancy, and leaders who understand that the future of work is about freedom, not force.

If you're reading this, you're probably part of this revolution. Maybe you're a leader trying to build something better, or maybe you're looking for an organization that already has. Either way, you understand that work isn't just changing – it's evolved. The dinosaurs just haven't noticed the meteor yet.

Welcome to Work is a Verb. Let's make some action happen.

The Power of Empty Space

Does opening your work calendar fill you with angst and revulsion reminiscent of checking the backside of a spider-squashing implement? Let's delve into why our primary organization tool can feel so chaotic, and explore effective strategies to reclaim our most valuable resource: time.

Remote work crackdown: how DOGE could push federal workers to quit

In the opinion column of The Wall Street Journal, sitcom villains Elon Musk and and Vivek Ramaswamy

revealed their grand plan to eliminate government waste… by eliminating a cost-effective remote work model in favor of a return to expensive offices.

The two plan to institute a five-day in-person work week across all federal agencies—not for culture or collaboration but to cause, in their own words, a “wave of voluntary terminations.” That’s not even the most tone deaf quote from the piece. They also say:

Most legal edicts aren’t laws enacted by Congress but “rules and regulations” promulgated by unelected bureaucrats—tens of thousands of them each year.

Of course, it then goes on to describe how they, as unelected Billionaire Bureaucrats, intend to fundamentally change how the federal government works.

Obviously remote work is hardly the most important thing at risk in America today. But there are two important reasons we should be paying attention:

Vivek and Elon are openly confirming what many of us already knew. That RTOs are not about culture or collaboration or results, but about goading employees into quitting by making their lives worse.
Musk has been an outspoken critic of remote work for a long time and his crusade against flexible work is unlikely to end here.

Elon and Vivek will claim that flexible work arrangements have led to waste, but the data doesn’t support that narrative. Here are the available facts based on reports from OPM (Office of Personnel Management) and the OMB (Office of Management & Budget):

Federal employees are less likely to work from home than their private sector counterparts (22% vs 25%).
Telework eligible federal employees also spend more time in the office. 60% of them come in daily compared to 50% in the private sector.
The data has consistently shown that flexible work arrangements have helped agencies to deliver more value to taxpayers.

But here’s what’s really interesting:

The federal government maintains 58,000 buildings with an average age of 50 years and an $80 billion maintenance backlog. Reducing this real estate footprint could save taxpayers billions, but that might impact commercial real estate values—and we can’t have that, can we?

The message is clear: This isn’t about efficiency. It’s not about culture. It’s about control. The question is: will we let billionaire bureaucrats dictate the future of work, or will we let the data speak for itself?

We probably can’t stop what’s coming. Some federal workers are protected by unions or annual teleworking agreements, but even that will only slow it down. What we can do though, is advocate for federal employees, the people who have dedicated their careers to serving us, and work to make sure that we stay on track toward a future of work that works for everyone.