Less is more when it comes to overtime

In an economy that just demands more and more of us, maintaining a work life balance is becoming harder as the time we spend working increases. 

But how healthy is it to work long hours, and how much more can we give of ourselves until we become ineffective?

There really is a point at which we are working too much in a week, and at that point, the quality of our work becomes so poor that we may as well quit and go get some rest.  This is a real issue for workers that are working with dangerous machinery, healthcare workers or even anyone who is dealing with any data where mistakes are an issue.  And regardless of our occupations, our physical, mental and spiritual health also will suffer so there really is a point at which we need to say, “enough!”

Stanford economist Professor John Pencavel conducted research on production records from British armament factories during World War II and was able to conclude that after forty-nine hours, marginal productivity began to decline sharply.  "The results are even starker when we are talking about very long working hours. Output at 70 hours of work differed little from output at 56 hours. That extra 14 hours was a waste of time."[1]

So stop doing this to yourself, and if you are a manager, give your subordinates a break.  Go home, rest and come back refreshed, rejuvenated and ready to face tomorrow replenished. When it comes to a good day’s work, quality is better than quantity so rather put in those quality hours and look after your health and wellbeing, it’s really not benefiting your health or your job by putting in those long hours.

To find out more about achieving a healthy work life balance in the workplace, contact us at The Time Clinic now.

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[1] http://bigthink.com/ideafeed/after-fifty-hours-a-week-worker-productivity-flatlines