Is Work Crazy Or Are You?
- Advoco
- Aug 14, 2020
- 2 min read
When I’m not at Advoco, I’m a coach at a local gym. Coaching there has opened my eyes to a new trend. Not a new fitness trend, but a trend in how people answer the question, “How’s it going?”
I tend to ask everyone that comes to my class this question. It never fails that over half of them answer with some form of, “It’s really crazy at work right now.” I hear it so often that I noticed that I say it a lot as well.
So why is everyone so crazy these days? It’s no secret that people are working longer, starting earlier, working later, working on weekends and whenever they have a spare moment. For many folks, there is no off time. People wear their excessive busyness as a badge of honor. I don’t think it is.
The truly “crazy” part, in my opinion, is that there isn’t suddenly way more work to be done than there was 5, 10, or 15 years ago. The problem is that now, there is hardly any uninterrupted time to dedicate to getting things done. The majority of our workday ends up being wasted on things that don’t matter.
The key is determining your time-sucks and then being deliberate about reducing or eliminating them. It also means taking a look in the mirror and checking your ego.
60-hour work weeks, endless meetings, overflowing inboxes, and unrealistic deadlines are all real-world problems. However, there is one person that holds the power over these time-sucks: you.
What if you politely told that co-worker that you didn’t have time to chat right now because you were working on a time sensitive task? What if you turned off your email notifications for a few hours? What if you put your phone on Do Not Disturb? Does that email really need a response tonight or are you responding so someone notices that you are working late? Are you working late because it is a mission critical activity that threatens the success of your customer? Or are you working late because you are a control freak and don’t think anyone can do it as good as you are going to do it?
By asking yourself these questions it will allow you to focus on what really matters and not waste your time at work. This will help take you from being “crazy” at work, to being in control.
Until next time…we are Advoco, make every minute count.
About Dale: As our Executive Director of Human Resources, Dale is the powerhouse behind helping our team grow. He graduated from USC-Upstate (but considers himself a Dayton Flyer). He has over twelve years of HR experience in a variety of industries, focused primarily on talent acquisition and organizational development. Dale is passionate about challenging himself, and when he’s not in the office, he’s training for his next big race. Each year he picks a different race to compete in. In the past it has been mostly running events, but this year is all about biking, he just completed a 75 mile relay from Asheville, SC to Greenville, SC. Questions? Send Dale an email!
Comments