Family and Community – Government and university studies support the idea that the
‘all work and no play’ lifestyle contributes to divorce, dysfunction in the family, and lack
of involvement and investment in the community and neighborhood.
As the community grows apart and neighbors become strangers, emotional and family
support for things like childcare, help with aging parents and support following trauma
and tragedy become real issues.
The community turns to the government to supply services to fill this gap, taxes rise and
people remain strangers. Families struggle with alternating schedules, and children fail to thrive emotionally and physically.
Divorce is rampant and single parents are under even more stress with even less time
to pay attention to children. So, things deteriorate even more! Role models for marriage, relationships and juggling time and family are important to a child’s adult relationships. If we do not provide those positive role models, we perpetuate the problem.
It is interesting to note that the generation of children now in the work force has started
to rebel against jobs and employers that require ridiculous hours and dedication beyond
the call of duty. They understand the toll this type of career takes on a life. They grew up in families that suffered this impact. Perhaps our greatest hope for change lies in this generation of seasoned veterans of dysfunctional families.
Productivity – If your employer believes that your eighty-hour workweek is giving him
more benefit, he should look at the statistics and information gathered by human
resource companies and companies that focus on efficiency and productivity.
It is a fact that the human brain needs downtime and rest and recreation to recycle.
Think about your own life and the times when you had to work long hours to get
something finished.
Perhaps you found that you could barely focus after a certain number of hours. There is
a reason that coaches that teach good study habits tell students not to cram for eighteen hours before an exam, but rather to spread out the studying and mix in recreation.
Take a walk; talk with friends to regain your clarity and focus.
If you and your employer truly want to take the best advantage of your time, you need to
take time for yourself. You will spend less time reworking things you’ve done wrong, mistakes you’ve made and details you’ve missed. And your employer will get better quality and output
regardless of your job.
Pilots are subject to time constraints and can only spend so many hours in the air
because airlines learned a long time ago that a tired and overworked pilot could make
critical errors.
In lengthy neurosurgery or heart surgery, surgeons take breaks and leave the operating
room to clear their heads and rest. Again, these habits and techniques were learned the hard way and only when critical mistakes were made did these work policies change. You wouldn’t want a tired doctor working on your open heart, would you?
