An Instaprint study has found that both Sheffield and Leeds have been ranked in the top ten worst cities to work from home in.
They analysed a variety of factors including property size, the cost of living and average download speeds to determine the worst places to live while working from home.
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Sheffield was ranked third, the city’s main flaw being its slow internet connection, while the UK average is 64mbps Sheffield has just 39mbps. This can make simple Zoom calls near unbearable and furthers what some neurologists are calling ‘Zoom fatigue.’
Councillor George Lindars-Hammond said: “Our council meetings can be lively, but Zoom doesn’t help that. I don’t mind them [Zoom meetings] but doing them all day every day is quite mind-numbing.”
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According to the Psychiatric Times, Zoom fatigue is described as “the tiredness, worry, or burnout associated with overusing virtual platforms of communication.”
Their analysis found: “There is robust evidence on how eye contact improves connection—faster responses, more memorization of faces, and increased likeability and attractiveness.”
The lack of such contact could be the leading cause of Zoom fatigue as psychologists say in-person interactions are important as they release a ‘cocktail’ of chemicals into the brain. These chemicals help ‘regulate our response to stress and anxiety making us better equipped to change’.
This burnout is said to affect 300 million people worldwide daily, and in this figure are thousands of people in South Yorkshire struggling with their internet connection. With no place in Yorkshire being mentioned in the study, residents are not best equipped to continue to tackle working and schooling from home.
Zoom© meeting
However, the instaprint study provided ways of staying motivated during these turbulent times. They suggest those struggling should communicate their struggles, challenge their mindset and, above all, try to stay positive.