☕️ (R)emote Expresso #49

☕️ (R)emote Expresso is your weekly dose of creator insights on remote collaboration designed to fuel your day, delivered once a week in your inbox 💌

Hey Remote Rebels and Digital Daydreamers,

Let's talk about theft.

Not the kind that gets you arrested. The kind that saves your life.

You stole back your lunch hour. The one that used to vanish into "quick syncs" and sad desk salads. Now you actually eat.

You stole back the commute time. Two hours a day that belonged to traffic and existential dread. Now it's sleep. Or a walk. Or just... nothing.

You stole the right to work when your brain actually works. Not 9-to-5 because someone decided that's productivity. But the hours when your ideas show up.

Remote work didn't give you these things.

You took them.

Often without permission. Sometimes without noticing.

And now? You're supposed to be grateful. Supposed to prove you're "worthy" of working from home by being more available than you ever were in the office.

Nope.

This week, we're not doing gratitude theater. We're doing inventory.

What did you steal back? And how do you make sure you never give it back?

🎭 How Each Generation Stole It Back

Gen Z: Stole back the right to have boundaries before anyone told them they shouldn't. Never learned that "yes" was the only acceptable answer. Still figuring out what they want, but absolutely clear about what they won't tolerate.

Millennials: Stole back time with their kids and aging parents. Stopped apologizing for picking up a sick child at 2pm. Turned caregiving from a secret shame into a non-negotiable.

Gen X: Stole back silence. No more open office chaos, no more pretending to look busy between tasks. Finally got the focus time they've been asking for since 1997.

Boomers: Stole back their expertise without the commute. Discovered they can mentor, lead, and contribute without performing "executive presence" in a corner office.

Different thefts. Same rebellion.

🏴‍☠️ The Stuff You Took (Without Realizing It)

Let's get specific. Here's what's been quietly sitting in your pocket:

Comfortable clothes. Real ones. Not "business casual" that cuts off your circulation.

Actual food. Lunch that didn't come from a vending machine or get eaten during a meeting.

Bathroom breaks without explanation. No weird hallway small talk. Just... go.

Your dog. Or cat. Or the silence of an empty house. The presence that makes work feel less isolating.

The right to look away. From the screen. From the people. From the performance of "engaged."

Meetings that start at :05 or :35. Because why does everything have to land on the hour?

Not performing "busy." No more keeping browser tabs open to look productive. No more faking urgency.

The permission to say "this could've been an email." And actually mean it.

These aren't perks. They're reparations.

🛡️ How Corporate Culture Tries to Take It Back

They want it back. And they're sneaky about it.

Watch for these moves:

"Recommended core hours" that somehow become mandatory. Funny how suggestions turn into expectations.

Green dot surveillance. When your Slack status becomes a performance review metric.

"Just hop on a quick call." The meeting that could've been a voice memo. They're testing your boundaries.

Presence over output. When face time (even virtual) matters more than the work you actually shipped.

The creep of "office culture" into remote spaces. Mandatory fun. Team-building that requires cameras. The slow rebuild of everything you escaped.

"We value flexibility..." followed by policies that require you to ask permission for the flexibility you already took.

Know the tricks. They're coming for what you stole.

🤖 AI Prompt of the Week

Ready to document what you've reclaimed? Try this:

ROLE: You are a thoughtful coach helping remote workers recognize and protect what they've reclaimed from corporate culture.

OBJECTIVE: Guide me through creating a personal 'Reclamation Inventory' by asking me exactly 3 questions. Based on how I answer the first question, determine what the next 2 questions should be to help me identify what I've stolen back, what matters most, and where my boundaries might be tested.

CONTEXT: I've been working remotely and have quietly taken back parts of my work life (time, energy, autonomy, rituals) that corporate culture used to control. I need clarity on what I've reclaimed and how to defend it.

First question to ask me:
'What do you do now in your workday that would've been impossible - or secretly shameful - in an office?'

After I answer, ask me 2 more questions tailored to my response. Make them specific, reflective without being precious, and useful for someone who is [insert: creative, parent, neurodivergent, night owl, etc.].**

OUTPUT: After I answer all 3 questions, write me a one-page 'Reclamation Manifesto' - a clear statement of what I've taken back and how I'll protect it when boundaries get tested.

**Customize the bracketed section with your own context - are you a creative, parent, neurodivergent, night owl, early riser, introvert, or something else entirely?

Let AI help you see what you've built - and defend it.

🎯 New: The (R)Challenge

(R)emotes, we've got something new for you.

Welcome to the (R)Challenge, our new format where we stop consuming passively to finally co-create actively.

The concept?
Led by Silvia Coco and Rodrigo Passarelli, this 3-week journey helps you turn your know-how into a lead magnet that actually attracts the right people - not just downloads.

First edition: free (because we're launching, and we want you in)

How to join:

1. Register for the Kickoff on our Hub or Luma

2. Complete your Hub registration in case (free, link by email)

3. Join the Challenge space in Circle

Kickoff Call: November 19, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM GMT on our Hub live room

Questions? We're in the Challenge space on the Hub 💛

💬 Your Turn

What's the best thing you stole back from corporate culture?

And flip it: Has anyone tried to take it back from you?

Hit reply and tell us your story. The best thefts (and attempted heists) might just make it into a future Espresso. ☕️🏴‍☠️

Collaboration isn't canceled - it's just gone global.

But you don't have to give back what you fought to reclaim.

The stuff you stole? It wasn't theirs to begin with. It was always yours.

Guard it like your life depends on it. Because it kind of does.

No hustle. No guilt. Just humans working on better ways to work - without asking permission.

— The (R) Generation Team 🧡 💪

PS: Your worth isn't measured by your green dot status. It's measured by what you create - on your terms. 🏴‍☠️

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BE A PART OF
THE R GENERATION COMMUNITY

R GENERATION brings together remote professionals from 50+ countries to explore the future of work through events, workshops, and AI-powered collaboration. Join a community where curiosity meets innovation and connections transcend borders.

Join us where bold ideas meet global community, and where we protect what we've taken back - together.