Do You Work Too Hard?
Most of us work too hard. I know I do. I love my work, I love my clients. I work hard to help them solve their problems – with ease, grace and joy. And some of their problems are really big, so it means much thought, research, diligence, collaboration, communication and planning on my part. Frankly, sometimes my work does NOT feel like my much-vaunted state of ease, grace and joy.
“Too” hard implies that we have crossed some boundary where the hard work is impinging and even threatening other areas of your life – tine with your loved ones, exercise and self-care, sleep, hobbies and other avocations, professional development, spiritual practice. There are 24 hours in the day, and no matter how much we love our work, “too” hard tells us that we have crossed a line.
There are a number of reasons why we work too hard:
- Like me, you LOVE your work. Time blurs when you are in the zone, which is often. The delight of meeting and exceeding your customers’ expectations is unparalleled – like a drug-induced high.
- You are not competent. You work hard because you are not competent, skilled and capable for the task. So you have to put in extra time and effort
- You are disorganized. Work takes longer because you are inefficient, with lack of priorities, poorly planned days, cluttered workspaces.
- Societal norms – working hard indicates to those looking on that you are diligent, responsible, to be trusted i.e. a valued contributor to your organization, community and country.
- It has become habit. You are so used to it that you know no other way; you saw your parents work hard and so you do too.
- It’s an escape. Unhappy home life? Well, just escape to work and stay there as long as possible!
Why are you working so hard? Which one(s) apply to you? And are your team members also working “too” hard? Why? You need to find out. Leading a team effectively requires that you understand the underlying reasons why you work so hard and why your team does too. Only then can you take steps for your team to work hard from time to time – and with ease, grace and joy.
THE BALANCED SCORECARD
If you want, I can develop a nice Strategy Map and Balanced Scorecard for you. But you would be wasting your money. There is no fill-in-the-blanks template that will create a strategy that your team is committed to implementing. That will only come if your team members are involved. There are various levels of involvement and participation as you develop your Balanced Scorecard:
- Board of Directors – key role of the Board is to guide strategy. It is always good to have your board involved upfront to set the framework for the strategy – the long term vision and strategic destination
- Management team – your senior management team are the key drivers of strategy design and execution. This team makes the tough decisions on strategic priorities, and must be included in the development of the strategy and be charged with its implementation
- Staff – everyone? Yes everyone. Gone are the days when your strategic plan was a closely guarded secret – with the Balanced Scorecard, the express aim is to “make strategy everyone’s job”. It’s great to involve your staff in the early stages through surveys and focus groups and then to keep them involved as you roll out the strategy. After all, isn’t it they who will implement?
- The CEO – In my experience in helping an array of organizations in the private, government and not-for-profit sectors to develop their Balanced Scorecard, the most significant predictor of success, common to all organizations is the commitment and dedication of the CEO to lead, drive, communicate the strategy – relentlessly and genuinely.
If you are a CEO, think long and hard about your willingness to make the necessary commitment and then consider how you involve these stakeholders. If you are not a CEO, find ways to support your CEO in developing the necessary commitment. Perhaps you may just be the catalyst he/she needs.
TAKE ONE ACTION
Take a break from working “too” hard to spend some time with yourself – a half day off playing golf, getting a massage, swimming, going to the movies or an art gallery. At the end of your break, check in with yourself about how you work.
Are there any changes you can make to work just as effectively but not at the expense of all the other important aspects of your life? Then make just one change – it may be as simple as a scheduled half day off once per month.
INTERESTING LINKS
Here are 4 excellent articles on the importance of Projects and how to successful plan and implement them by my coach, Nick Hughes (yes, I practice what I preach so I DO have a coach):
– click to view
Missing Ingredient for Business Success
– click to view
In Search of the High/High’s
In the Balance Scorecard I agree with all that is said except that for the CEO to move forward he/she needs to create an atmosphere of complete trust of particularly for staff.