It has been said that work takes up the time allowed for its completion. This is probably true in many instances. It is a sad and jaded truth, based upon the unfortunate reality of mutual exploitation and perception of human nature through a dark and cynical prism. I have always been a student of the laws that pertain to productivity. I am fascinated with the amount of quality work that some people get done in a day and am shocked at how little others will accomplish in that same period of time. I myself measure my productivity in terms of sixty-minute increments and see productivity at client sites in the same way. From the standpoint of productivity, the sixty-minute hour is a very simple and interesting concept that raises the following central questions:
If you think you are going to get the definitive answers to these questions in this article, guess again. The theories, postulates, ideas and studies that have been done on productivity are endless. But let’s look at three that are good examples:
I am writing this article while flying home to Boston. I am well rested and running on all eight cylinders. This is my second article of the day, and I am writing it in longhand. I am writing so quickly that I am not sure I will be able to read my own handwriting when the time comes for transcription at the computer. The ideas are pouring out in a deluge, and I am amazed at my level of productivity. I am hyper-focused on my work and am probably productive to the tune of fifty to fifty-five minute per hour. I am pleased to be as productive as I am currently, but what about tomorrow? Handling administrative functions for my business, interruptions, answering e-mail, dealing with clients, preparing for Toastmasters and exhaustion from the trip are sure to take their toll. How productive will I be on Monday morning? How many useful minutes will I get out of each hour? Maybe 30 or 35 at the most. This is the nature of productivity. Sometimes up and sometimes down. We are all human. We are fragile in more ways than we care to admit to ourselves, let alone the world. With this in mind, the central question becomes: How can we become more productive and maintain, more or less, at that level of productivity whenever possible? The answer is, as usual, far more complex than the question. For starters, I believe that almost all employees really do want to be more productive. With that belief acting as a structural underpinning, the challenge now becomes providing them with ideas and tools as to what actions and behaviors affect productivity and how these entities can be used to increase productivity in a real and measurable way. For recruiters, consider asking the candidate if they consider themselves to be productive (they will not answer this question with the usual aplomb, because few people if any ask it, so they have little practice). Feel free to probe, as the answer will probably be in the affirmative. Try to find out exactly what candidates do to achieve and maintain a high level of productivity. Be wary of the candidate that tells you they work 18-hour days. That is not a sign of productivity but a sign of a problem instead. I suggest this because most interviews focus on experience. But after a certain point, experience (how long they have been doing what you hired them to do) becomes redundant, and productivity (how much they accomplish working within your organization) is what sets the best employees apart from the more marginal ones. For HR professionals, I can assure you that habits leading to higher levels of productivity can be learned. Consider either one-on-one coaching with employees that are not as productive as they need to be to succeed, or perhaps developing an interactive half-day program on enhancing productivity. It has been my experience that self-discipline, time management, planning, and the ability to set and manage priorities will help anyone become more productive if utilized consistently. As a result, the following basic ideas are a good place to start in working with employees on productivity:
Regardless of your workload, there are some people that know there is always more to do. Let that reality be something you can live with and understand that you can always do more work tomorrow. Walt Whitman once said, “There is nothing I fear more than the day when there is nothing left to do.” I believe Mr. Whitman was correct. I fear that day as well.