What is your take on this, and what is your point of reference?
10 thoughts on “Submitted For Discussion”
1) I think that there are certain professions where being a workaholic may actually be a good thing, example: scientists working on an AIDS vaccine. But in most cases the workaholics are working under pressure from a boss to make more money, or to do the work of two people so the boss doesn’t have to shell out the money to hire another person. Where is the honor and nobility in that? Of course the boss won’t hire adequate staff if one person is willing to work 80 hours a week.
2) The article said that workaholics will be rewarded. How? By not having a family or social life? By having a much higher rate of heart attacks and stress-related illness? By a bigger paycheck (we all know that isn’t always the case.)
3) Sure, some people do commute 45 minutes a day. And some people spend 45 minutes extra at work. But then there are people who commute 3 hours a day AND spend 3 hours a day extra at work. Without compensation for the travel or the work.
I think it all comes down to what your priorities are. If you WANT to spend every waking moment working towards something, go for it. If someone else wants you to be spending every waking moment doing something for them, I think you should give serious consideration to what you have to give up for the greater good of your boss. If family, friends, hobbies, travel, etc aren’t a priority to you, aren’t what you want to be doing with your life, and your job is, it’s not an issue. If those things are important, you need to re-work your priorities and allocate your time accordingly.
Addendum (like it needs more): Most European countries have much shorter work weeks and far more vacation than we do in the U.S. Are they any less productive? Do we in the U.S. really produce such astounding work and have such amazing lives that we need to spend such long hours in the office?
No one ever said on their death bed that they wish they’d spent more time at the office. (Who originally said that?)
Yeah…there are things I wanted to say, but I think Alissa mostly said them all. What I will add is sort of a comment on her addendum…taking breaks, I believe, makes you MORE productive. No one can work 20 hours straight and still produce quality results. The body, and more importantly the brain, need rest. You need breaks. I say that a well-rested, happy, non-stressed worker who works for 6 hours can produce far more and far better work than a stressed-out, tired, unhappy worker working for 12 hours. I’m sure there is research to support my claim.
I think he’s right, at least with respect to the fact that most of us are destined for balance and moderation, etc. But there’s a part of me that wishes I had something to be compulsive about like that — he’s also right in that true visionaries never could have achieved anything without obsessive work. The problem is that most of us aren’t visionaries, and we wind up working obessively for all the wrong reasons. See Alissa’s first point.
Right…but you know what? Even the visionaries have some sort of balance. Sure, they work ridiculous numbers of hours, but that is balanced out by the purpose of the work. If you work ridiculous hours in order to find a cure for AIDS, that is balanced by the (hopeful) end result. Working obsessively so you can finish a PowerPoint presentation has no balance to it.
1) I think that there are certain professions where being a workaholic may actually be a good thing, example: scientists working on an AIDS vaccine. But in most cases the workaholics are working under pressure from a boss to make more money, or to do the work of two people so the boss doesn’t have to shell out the money to hire another person. Where is the honor and nobility in that? Of course the boss won’t hire adequate staff if one person is willing to work 80 hours a week.
2) The article said that workaholics will be rewarded. How? By not having a family or social life? By having a much higher rate of heart attacks and stress-related illness? By a bigger paycheck (we all know that isn’t always the case.)
3) Sure, some people do commute 45 minutes a day. And some people spend 45 minutes extra at work. But then there are people who commute 3 hours a day AND spend 3 hours a day extra at work. Without compensation for the travel or the work.
I think it all comes down to what your priorities are. If you WANT to spend every waking moment working towards something, go for it. If someone else wants you to be spending every waking moment doing something for them, I think you should give serious consideration to what you have to give up for the greater good of your boss. If family, friends, hobbies, travel, etc aren’t a priority to you, aren’t what you want to be doing with your life, and your job is, it’s not an issue. If those things are important, you need to re-work your priorities and allocate your time accordingly.
wow. i don’t think i could have put it any better. go alissa!
Addendum (like it needs more): Most European countries have much shorter work weeks and far more vacation than we do in the U.S. Are they any less productive? Do we in the U.S. really produce such astounding work and have such amazing lives that we need to spend such long hours in the office?
No one ever said on their death bed that they wish they’d spent more time at the office. (Who originally said that?)
Yeah…there are things I wanted to say, but I think Alissa mostly said them all. What I will add is sort of a comment on her addendum…taking breaks, I believe, makes you MORE productive. No one can work 20 hours straight and still produce quality results. The body, and more importantly the brain, need rest. You need breaks. I say that a well-rested, happy, non-stressed worker who works for 6 hours can produce far more and far better work than a stressed-out, tired, unhappy worker working for 12 hours. I’m sure there is research to support my claim.
Oh, and as for my point of reference…I’ve been a manager, a lot. I see how people work, so I have a good sense of what works…
you’ve been a manager “a lot”… that’s sorta a bold statement for someone who’s only been out of school for 3 years…..
Yeah…and most of the jobs I’ve ever had in my short work experience (going back to during college) have involved me being managment…
I think he’s right, at least with respect to the fact that most of us are destined for balance and moderation, etc. But there’s a part of me that wishes I had something to be compulsive about like that — he’s also right in that true visionaries never could have achieved anything without obsessive work. The problem is that most of us aren’t visionaries, and we wind up working obessively for all the wrong reasons. See Alissa’s first point.
Right…but you know what? Even the visionaries have some sort of balance. Sure, they work ridiculous numbers of hours, but that is balanced out by the purpose of the work. If you work ridiculous hours in order to find a cure for AIDS, that is balanced by the (hopeful) end result. Working obsessively so you can finish a PowerPoint presentation has no balance to it.
hear, hear.