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It happens to everybody these days. After eight hours in the office and perhaps a lengthy commute, you reach home and are back in front of the computer. There are emails to reply to and that project report that needs touching up. Besides, the journey back home was spent on the Blackberry — phone calls and more emails. A survey by Hewlett Packard has found that constantly checking email can reduce your IQ by up to 10 points — the same as taking hard drugs.
But if you are caught playing Free Cell in office, you’ll get a black mark on your progress report. “And that’s the reason why so many old-fashioned bosses don’t like their employees telecommuting,” says Mumbai-based HR consultant D. Singh. “They feel they must be playing Free Cell all the time.”
It’s not so much that you don’t have enough work. But bosses recognise that your assignments can actually be finished in short spells. If you were in the office, you would be loaded with other work. At home, you can always claim that you are still at it.
Recent research shows that if you have your nose to the grindstone, you end up doing less than you would if you take reasonable breaks.
It’s like taking a vacation. A couple of weeks off during summer recharges your cells and you come back raring to go. Similarly, a few minutes off during the day perks you up for the next stint of concentration. That’s why it works better at home. The few minutes could mean a power nap or a bath, things you cannot do at work.
Logging onto Facebook could often be such a welcome relief. But too many employers feel that social media are reducing productivity. If all technological advances can be used only for work purposes, information overload will drive you crazy. Facebook, Twitter and even Free Cell are meant for the mindless; it is something you do with half your brain asleep.
Here’s what some other surveys are saying. A Microsoft survey finds that Americans spend 45 hours a week at work, but describe 16 of those as “unproductive”. They have been brainwashed into believing that a visit to the water cooler is goofing off on office time. An America Online survey comes to a similar conclusion: in a five-day week, two are wasted. A salary.com survey gives a break-up. The biggest culprits are: Surfing the Net — 44.7 per cent; socialising with co-workers — 23.4 per cent; conducting personal business — 6.8 per cent; spacing out — 3.9 per cent; running errands — 3.1 per cent; making personal calls — 2.3 per cent; applying for jobs — 1.3 per cent; planning personal events — 1.0 per cent; arriving late/leaving early — 1.0 per cent; and others — 12.5 per cent.
All this frantic activity and stress on not wasting a single minute is typical of a culture that spends most of the time running after its own tail. Europe, by contrast, is a shade more sedentary. A survey says that 65 per cent of the workers feel a little Facebook or Twitter time during the day helps them focus better.
India was very much part of the sedentary continent. In fact, it had a siesta culture. But aspirations of becoming one of the fastest growing economies in the world have changed all that. “Being available 24/7 — the BlackBerry shares your pillow at night —sounds more efficient,” says Singh. “But you are working only at one-third your capacity. It all evens out.”
DRAWING THE WASTE LINE
Why people waste time at work and how to stop them
Young employees waste more time at work. The reason could be that they confuse the meaning of getting more done with spending more time at work.
One third of employees spend their work-time for non-work related activities because they do not have enough work to do. The solution seems easy: give employees more tasks. But that is not a wise decision. The key component in productivity, innovation and job satisfaction is personal and professional development. So it would be best to fill wasted time with developmental programmes to help employees grow personally and professionally.
One quarter of employees waste time at work because they feel that they are not paid enough. If they feel underpaid, they should get a better job. As for motivation, employees are more likely to be motivated by regular praise, respect in the office, a sense of having a real voice in the business and some level of job security. These things matter more than high wages.
