The work ethic in the US today seems to push us all into working harder and faster than we have ever worked before. The technology that was supposed to make life easier has just added to our work load. With email, instant messaging, Blackberries, and mobile phones we are all very accessible. There is almost no place that we can go where we won’t be disturbed!
Clients tell me they cancel vacations because they don’t have time to take them. The ones that take a vacation bring their Blackberry along so they can keep up with their email. Women attorneys tell me they can’t see how children and a family could ever fit into their lives and still have a thriving law practice. Is it possible to have a successful business and still have a rich full life outside of the office?
October 24th is the 65th anniversary of the 40 hour work week. I bet you are working more than 40 hours. Have we taken a step backward? The organization Take Back Your Time (www.timeday.org says, "Millions of Americans are over worked, over scheduled and just plain stressed out?" Does this sound like you?
October 24th is also Take Back Your Time Day. The organization that started this day (www.timeday.org 2 years ago has the following agenda:
Guaranteeing paid childbirth leave for all parents. Today, only 40% of Americans are able to take advantage of the 12 weeks of unpaid leave provided by the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993.
Guaranteeing at least one week of paid sick leave for all workers. Many Americans work while sick, lowering productivity and endangering other workers.
Guaranteeing at least three weeks of paid annual vacation leave for all workers. Studies show that 28% of all female employees and 37% of women earning less than $40,000 a year receive no paid vacation at all.
Placing a limit on the amount of compulsory overtime work that an employer can impose, with our goal being to give employees the right to accept or refuse overtime work.
Making Election Day a holiday, with the understanding that Americans need time for civic and political participation.
Making it easier for Americans to choose part-time work. Hourly wage parity and protection of promotions and pro-rated benefits for part-time workers.
Working long hours with little time off is a sacrifice that in my opinion we can not afford. It is during our time off that we relax and that enables us to be more creative. (Have you ever gone to bed at night and suddenly thought of something innovative that you hadn’t been able to figure out all day?) We lose that creativity if we are rushing from one project to another always focused on getting something done.
By working those long hours we are also losing precious time with our children. The pleasure of being a parent is watching our children as they grow. Children thrive when parents stay involved in their lives. Missing time together is a huge sacrifice for both parents and children.
Community work also suffers when people work long hours. If you are exhausted by long hours at work, how will you find time to volunteer for a non profit organization?
Take Action Make an assessment of your life in terms of work time versus time off. Are you satisfied with the balance? What one thing could you do to better honor your own work/life balance distribution? Find a way to integrate it into your life.
Investigate www.timeday.org. What else intrigues you about their agenda? Are you interested in helping them?
Think about ways that you might work fewer hours and still accomplish the same or more work. Working smarter not harder is often the focus of my coaching work. Call me for a time management diagnostic.
Do you have a unique work model? I am interested in finding different work models that professionals use to allow them to honor all facets of their lives. Please share yours with me.
To learn more about this author, visit Alvah Parker's Website.
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