Comments on: The Cult of Overwork is alive and well. Sigh! http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/ Make Yourself and Your Business Happy At Work Sun, 20 May 2012 05:56:48 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 By: Mette http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-245119 Mette Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:19:57 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-245119 Well done Guilty ... the first step is taken go for it Well done Guilty … the first step is taken go for it

]]> By: TheGuilty http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-245114 TheGuilty Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:54:27 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-245114 I have been doing some soul searching myself lately about all the overtime I am spending at the office. I have realized I am really NOT producing work for those entire 10-11 hours that I am here, which is in addition to the 2-4 more hours I work on my own business when I get home. Additionally I feel perpetually overworked and burned out and oftentimes just kind of blah/not happy. I, just this morning before reading this article, made a pact with myself to get back to an 8 hour office day and start rebuilding my life. I have been doing some soul searching myself lately about all the overtime I am spending at the office. I have realized I am really NOT producing work for those entire 10-11 hours that I am here, which is in addition to the 2-4 more hours I work on my own business when I get home. Additionally I feel perpetually overworked and burned out and oftentimes just kind of blah/not happy. I, just this morning before reading this article, made a pact with myself to get back to an 8 hour office day and start rebuilding my life.

]]> By: deano http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-245008 deano Tue, 08 Dec 2009 23:36:50 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-245008 I briefly worked in the US a few years ago and noticed a contrast with working here in australia. In the US, everyone turns up for work early in the morning, and stays in the office until later at night, but they just don't do as much actual work. In the states, my colleagues didn't seem to have as many productive hours in the day; they spent a time blogging or reading the news or whatever which doesn't happen as much at home. I briefly worked in the US a few years ago and noticed a contrast with working here in australia. In the US, everyone turns up for work early in the morning, and stays in the office until later at night, but they just don’t do as much actual work. In the states, my colleagues didn’t seem to have as many productive hours in the day; they spent a time blogging or reading the news or whatever which doesn’t happen as much at home.

]]> By: js http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244926 js Mon, 30 Nov 2009 20:13:02 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244926 "And while this might seem unhealthy, not scalable, obsessive, manic or simply ridiculous, from an ecosystem perspective it’s basically unbeatable." I think he basically nailed it there, although I don't get the last part. Unhealthy and not scalable is right. What happens to society if EVERYONE is working 12 hour days? Who raises the kids (or is this stuff only for people in their early 20s)? And if the answer is noone, what happens to society in the long run? Who thinks about broader community issues, or thinks about much of anything at all if they spent all their time working? Because that is how I would understand "from an ecosystem perspective". Is that ecosystem profitable short term for a company (possibly although I know it the point of this post is to contest that). Is that ecosystem sustainable long term as a way to run a society? No way! “And while this might seem unhealthy, not scalable, obsessive, manic or simply ridiculous, from an ecosystem perspective it’s basically unbeatable.”

I think he basically nailed it there, although I don’t get the last part. Unhealthy and not scalable is right. What happens to society if EVERYONE is working 12 hour days? Who raises the kids (or is this stuff only for people in their early 20s)? And if the answer is noone, what happens to society in the long run? Who thinks about broader community issues, or thinks about much of anything at all if they spent all their time working?

Because that is how I would understand “from an ecosystem perspective”. Is that ecosystem profitable short term for a company (possibly although I know it the point of this post is to contest that). Is that ecosystem sustainable long term as a way to run a society? No way!

]]> By: links for 2009-11-30 « Boskabout http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244924 links for 2009-11-30 « Boskabout Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:03:00 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244924 [...] The Cult of Overwork is alive and well. Sigh! It’s so easy to equate “working long hours” with “commitment” and “success”. When you see the office full of people late at night, you automatically think “WOW, these people are serious – they’re going places.” (tags: management work business productivity) [...] [...] The Cult of Overwork is alive and well. Sigh! It’s so easy to equate “working long hours” with “commitment” and “success”. When you see the office full of people late at night, you automatically think “WOW, these people are serious – they’re going places.” (tags: management work business productivity) [...]

]]> By: Carlos http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244923 Carlos Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:07:26 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244923 I live in Mexico city and just got a new job in which people work from 8 am to 730 almost everyday. I really think people is not working well and most of them are really unhappy with this situation but they still work that way everyday and think that people who just work 8 hours a day are not doing things right. This article is really true, but I wish there was a sugestion about how to make an organisational/cultural change over this matter. I live in Mexico city and just got a new job in which people work from 8 am to 730 almost everyday. I really think people is not working well and most of them are really unhappy with this situation but they still work that way everyday and think that people who just work 8 hours a day are not doing things right.

This article is really true, but I wish there was a sugestion about how to make an organisational/cultural change over this matter.

]]> By: Kevin Carson http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244911 Kevin Carson Mon, 30 Nov 2009 06:50:41 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244911 In many cases, senior management is so out of touch with the production side of things they don't have any "productivity" metrics that aren't completely worthless. As Paul Goodman put it 45 years ago, "they don't know what a good job of work is." So they wind up using "face time" as a proxy for productivity. The other side of it is that most of the extra time spent in the office by people competing to be seen as last out is probably devoted to "reverse telecommuting": paying bills, surfing the web, shopping, talking on the phone, personal email, etc. In other words, that venture capitalist is stoopid. In many cases, senior management is so out of touch with the production side of things they don’t have any “productivity” metrics that aren’t completely worthless. As Paul Goodman put it 45 years ago, “they don’t know what a good job of work is.” So they wind up using “face time” as a proxy for productivity. The other side of it is that most of the extra time spent in the office by people competing to be seen as last out is probably devoted to “reverse telecommuting”: paying bills, surfing the web, shopping, talking on the phone, personal email, etc.

In other words, that venture capitalist is stoopid.

]]> By: The rules of productivity presentation http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244876 The rules of productivity presentation Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:21:20 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244876 [...] for all the great comments on my last post on The Cult of [...] [...] for all the great comments on my last post on The Cult of [...]

]]> By: emily http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244868 emily Thu, 26 Nov 2009 05:53:50 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244868 Yeah well when there are no jobs, and your boss tells you that your reward for all your hard work over the past year is that you get to keep your job (thanks, boss), and when you live in a society where job security is at a premium, you are constantly under pressure. At the same time, when you get no raise for more than 2 years, you kinda get turned off to wanting to do any kind of overtime for your boss. Yeah well when there are no jobs, and your boss tells you that your reward for all your hard work over the past year is that you get to keep your job (thanks, boss), and when you live in a society where job security is at a premium, you are constantly under pressure.

At the same time, when you get no raise for more than 2 years, you kinda get turned off to wanting to do any kind of overtime for your boss.

]]> By: Monica http://positivesharing.com/2009/11/the-cult-of-overwork-is-alive-and-well-sigh/#comment-244856 Monica Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:40:11 +0000 http://positivesharing.com/?p=2748#comment-244856 DH - i'm glad you have a great therapist who pointed out that the chioce has been yours all along whether to stay late at work or not =-) and good for you for realizing that you have mistakes to correct the next day if you stay late - you're well on the way to taking care of yourself, which really means doing better work! i know the feeling of doing too much work, no one noticing and feeling resentful, not to mention burned out. you are quite correct when you say "when the chips are down, no one even considers how many extra hours you have done". now i do a level of work that works best for me and keep the resentful feelings to a minimum - not always easy in the non-profit environment i work in where many people are pretty good at moving their work onto others =-( DH – i’m glad you have a great therapist who pointed out that the chioce has been yours all along whether to stay late at work or not =-)
and good for you for realizing that you have mistakes to correct the next day if you stay late – you’re well on the way to taking care of yourself, which really means doing better work!

i know the feeling of doing too much work, no one noticing and feeling resentful, not to mention burned out. you are quite correct when you say “when the chips are down, no one even considers how many extra hours you have done”. now i do a level of work that works best for me and keep the resentful feelings to a minimum – not always easy in the non-profit environment i work in where many people are pretty good at moving their work onto others =-(

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