For Real Productivity, Less is Truly More
Tony Schwartz
When I wrote a post on this site about The Myth of Productivity
recently, a number of commentators argued productivity has gone up not
because employees are running scared, but rather because companies have
finally laid off the slackers who were dragging productivity down.
There are surely plenty of low performers who got the ax, but there are
also many committed high performers among the millions of people who
have lost their jobs over the past two years. There are also many high
performing survivors at these companies who are being pushed to work in
ways that aren't sustainable.
The way we're working isn't working — for employees or for their
employers. There is a better way to fuel productivity and high
performance. The first key to changing the way we work is recognizing
that the value of those you manage isn't generated by the number of
hours they work, but rather by how much value they produce during the
hours we are working. Working longer hours, juggling more tasks and
answering more emails isn't the solution.
As every great athlete understands, the highest performance occurs when
we balance work and effort with rest and renewal. The human body is
hard-wired to pulse, and requires renewal at regular intervals not just
physically, but also mentally and emotionally.
Unfortunately, rest and renewal get no respect in the organizational
world. Instead, most managers instinctively view those who seem to need
time for rest and renewal as slackers.
But what are the costs of working continuously? Do we think as clearly,
creatively and strategically, or work as effectively with colleagues and
clients, in the 10th or 12th or 14th hour of a workday devoid of real
breaks, as you do in the 2nd or the 4th?
Of course not. And that's because human beings aren't wired to operate
like computers.
More than 50 years ago, the pioneering sleep researcher Nathaniel
Kleitman discovered something he named the "basic rest-activity cycle" —
the 90 minute periods at night during which we move progressively
through five stages of sleep, from light to deep, and then out again.
While it's much less well known, Kleitman also observed that our bodies
operate by the same 90 minute rhythm during the day. When we're awake,
we move from higher to lower alertness every 90 minutes. Other
researchers have called this our "ultradian rhythm."
Our bodies sends us clear signals when we need a break, including
fidgetiness, hunger, drowsiness and loss of focus. But mostly, we
override them. Instead, we find artificial ways to pump up our energy:
caffeine, foods high in sugar and simple carbohydrates, and our body's
own stress hormones — adrenalin, noradrenalin and cortisol.
After working at high intensity for more than 90 minutes, we begin to
draw on these emergency reserves to keep us going. In the process, we
move from parasympathetic to a sympathetic arousal — a physiological
state more commonly known as "fight or flight."
One consequence of relying on stress hormones for energy is that the
prefrontal cortex begins to shut down. We become more reactive and less
capable of thinking clearly and reflectively, or seeing the big picture.
In the renowned 1993 study of young violinists, performance researcher
Anders Ericsson found that the best ones all practiced the same way: in
the morning, in three increments of no more than 90 minutes each, with a
break between each one. Ericcson found the same pattern among other
musicians, athletes, chess players and writers.
For the first several books I wrote, I typically sat at my desk for 10
or even 12 hours at a time. I never finished a book in less than a year.
For my new book, The Way We're Working Isn't Working, I wrote without
interruptions for three 90 minute periods, and took a break between each
one. I had breakfast after the first session, went for a run after the
second, and had lunch after the third. I wrote no more than 4 1/2 hours
a day, and finished the book in less than six months. By limiting each
writing cycle to 90 minutes and building in periods of renewal, I was
able to focus far more intensely and get more done in far less time.
The counterintuitive secret to sustainable great performance is to live
like a sprinter. In practice, that means working at your highest
intensity in the mornings, for no more than 90 minutes at a time before
taking a true break. And getting those who work for you to do the same.
Obviously, it's not possible for every employee to work in multiple
uninterrupted 90-minute sprints, given the range of demands they face.
It is possible for you as a leader and managers to make a shift in the
way you manage your energy, and to better model this new way of working
yourself. Make it a high priority to find at least one time a day —
preferably in the morning — to focus single-mindedly on your most
challenging and important task for 60 to 90 minutes. Encourage those who
work for you to do the same.
In addition, encourage your employees to take true renewal breaks
intermittently through the day. It's possible to get a great deal of
renewal in a very short time. Try this technique, for example:
Build a more rhythmic pulse into your workdays and you'll increase your
own effectiveness and your satisfaction. Support this way of working
among those you manage and you'll fuel both loyalty and huge competitive
advantage.
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