Work Smarter, Not Longer

In “The Research Is Clear: Long Hours Backfire for People and for Companies” (Harvard Business Review, August 19, 2015)), Sarah Green Carmichael writes:

In the 19th century, when organized labor first compelled factory owners to limit workdays to 10 (and then eight) hours, management was surprised to discover that output actually increased – and that expensive mistakes and accidents decreased. This is an experiment that Harvard Business School’s Leslie Perlow and Jessica Porter repeated over a century later with knowledge workers. It still held true. Predictable, required time off (like nights and weekends) actually made teams of consultants more productive.

While we might feel better about ourselves or think we are awesome in other people’s eyes, overwork is detrimental to though, judgement, and action. It turns help into harm.

You want productivity, better grades, better work performance, better athletic performance? Sleep. Have fun. Play. Rest. Get variety in your life.