A workweek of 60 hours is not cool, it is inefficient

It always felt a bit like a competition. You work 40 hours? Then I work at least 50. You every night until nine? Then I until ten. I never really understood the 80-hour workweek. Because that means you work seven days a week from nine in the morning until half past eight in the evening. And how on earth do you stay somewhat productive then? keep your friends? The experts' answer: not. It also seemed quite unworkable to me, so I’m glad to be able to back this up.

In the Business Break Podcast from Business Insider, neuropsychologist Mark Tigchelaar explains it simply. In 60 hours of work, you get less done than in 40 hours if you have a knowledge profession and thus mainly do thinking work. Excuse me, but I had to laugh so hard at this. That one colleague is bragging about the exorbitant number of hours he/she puts in, turns out it actually works the other way around. And what does that colleague mainly do in those hours? Being visible instead of achieving results. Tigchelaar's tip to get more done is literally: work fewer hours, you become more efficient.

Being efficient is the new smart, as proven by entrepreneur and conversation partner Charlotte van ’t Wout in the podcast. She works with a timer, so she does her work as efficiently as possible. She is also realistic about her hours. She doesn’t talk in half days, but in exact times and calmly schedules a 20-minute meeting, so people get straight to the point. I suggest everyone maintains that last one, because we can also chat during drinks.

More tips to work more efficiently from the experts? Plan your tasks from heavy to light. In the morning, you seem to be just a bit smarter, and in the afternoon faster. Measuring is knowing, so time your tasks for yourself. Do one thing at a time, multitasking is actually a lie. And especially don’t get stuck in endless emailing and messaging, because that is killing for your productivity.

By the way, it is important that you take breaks several times in between, not to make a call but to stare into space and recharge your brain. I am trying this this week, so you will get an update soon on whether it works for me.

Source: Business Break Podcast, Business Insider