Leon Gettler reports: According to the Harvard Business Review, Extreme Jobs: The Dangerous Allure of the 70-Hour Workweek , there’s a new breed of worker where no amount of work is too much. People are putting in extreme hours, if not in the office then at their own computer, BlackBerry or fax machine.The study, based on surveys of two million high-income earners in the US, found that more than 50 per cent of these have hyper jobs where they were putting in over 70 hours, two out of three people with extreme jobs said that they have to be available and deal with emergencies at any time, and that vacations seems to be shrinking with 42 per cent taking 10 or fewer vacation days per year.
And yes, there was a price. More than 69 per cent said they would be healthier if they worked less extremely; 58 per cent said work got in the way of strong relationships with their children; 46 per cent said it damaged relationships with their spouses; and 50 per cent said their jobs made it impossible to have a good sex life.
66 per cent said they loved their jobs and that figure rose to 76 per cent in global companies. In other words, excessive work might destroy their marriages, relationships with their kids and sex life but at least they were happy in their work. And in a weird way, it makes sense. Returning home to a bad marriage, an empty refrigerator or a neglected teenager is not much chop, so why not stay behind at work?
The study also says women are at a disadvantage. They don't shirk the pressure or hours, but they are not matching the hours logged by their male colleagues and that's particularly true of mothers. They simply can't, or don't choose to, work exceedingly long hours.
My only comment is that I’m caught up in this too, doing maybe a 15 to 17 hour day and I’d sure like to reduce it somehow. Social life is virtually non-existent and my last one week holiday was in 2003. Unlike the high flyers above though, I’m not raking in the cash but I am doing work I like and that’s possibly why I’m still not completely out of my tree yet. Exercise, diet and sleep are probably also the keys. The days fly by and we're one day closer ...
I work in a high pressure job too. However I have always lived by some simple rules that I notice allow me to put in less hours than some of my colleagues.
ReplyDelete1- Don't go the extra mile when you won't be recognised for it at the year end.
2- Start as you mean to go on. Don't come in really early for a start, it just becomes expected of you.
3 - turn off your work phone and blackberry when you get home. The temptation is too great to work out of ours
4 - Book holidays well in advance, it gives you something to look forward to and then becomes harder to cancel as the time get closer, no matter the pressure of work.
It works for me!
This is sound, Cityunslicker. I like scheduling breaks in the day of 20 minutes - actually write them in under: "See Natasha Smith" or something and then it can't be cancelled.
ReplyDeleteIf you are doing work you like, then that is so important. When you get to hate your job but are still putting in all those hours, you can wonder if life is worth living.
ReplyDelete