As a leader, when you replace the word overtime with overwork, you get a better perspective of what is really going on.
The measure of overtime in your team is the measure of overwork.
I smile when I hear leaders speak about the cost savings from trading-off recruiting personnel, and instead paying overtime. They don’t get it.
In my life, I have been more productive when I have worked less, not worked more.
Working long hours seems like a bragging right, but it is actually a beginner’s plight. As mastery is gained, your biggest leverage is doing more in less time.
It is a misnomer to be improving productivity and working longer hours.
If you design your team with the option of overtime, there will always be reason for it, following parkinson’s law (work expands to fill the time available for it).
The most gruelling work is not time-bound. Which is why I love the project approach in many aspects of my life-work.
Overtime goes beyond the price (short-term tradeoff). It is a cost (long-term tradeoff). Every time you justify overtime, you justify overwork. Overwork is a limitation to output.
If you understand the game of productivity, you will see that output improves with less available time, not more.
– Osasu Oviawe
