Work/life balance is something many of us struggle with. Late nights at the office. Evening work once the family goes to bed. Or, weekend work just to keep up. I profess to regularly having “work/life balance” as a goal on my development plan.
Since I have always enjoyed work, I don’t mind working long hours; I truly believe that if you are passionate about what you do, work can be part of your life’s mission. That being said, I think it is important to make sure that there is plenty of time for family, play, volunteering, and just plain relaxation. I was reminded of how to do this when I attended a conference recently and heard Dr. Jim Goodnight speak on the issue of work/life balance.
Dr. Goodnight is the President/CEO of SAS, a leader in business analytics software. Goodnight was a panel member; the moderator was Jim Collins (of Built to Last and Good to Great fame). As you know, IT professionals work in a world known for 80 hour workweeks and burning people out. Collins asked Dr. Goodnight how he managed to create an environment where employees enjoyed a work/life balance (at SAS a 35 hour workweek).
Goodnight responded (and I paraphrase)… Anything above 35 hours is mush. Our employees go home and live a life. They enjoy their families. They do other things. We work hard when we’re here. We’re productive. Then we go home. Employees who work 80 hours go back the next day and fix the mistakes they made from hours 35-80 the day before.
It got me thinking. What kind of mistakes have I been making from hours 35-80?
How about you? How about your team? What kind of expectations have you been creating regarding hours and work? Is it more about hours than results and efficiency?
Tags: 80 hour workweek, Beyond the Jargon, Built to Last, burnout, Calibra, Diane Hamilton, Dr. Jim Goodnight, Good to Great, Jim Collins, SAS, Team Dynamics, work environment, work/life balance
