The typical work calendar is blocked out with back-to-back meetings, huddles, workshops, town halls…so many things to attend. We’re all super busy.
And, because of this, the only time left in the day to do the work is after hours. This is the only time when you can slow down and find the space to do the thinking required to DO the work.
A Harvard Business Review article titled Beyond Burned Out had two key findings:
One, that 89% of respondents said their work-life was getting worse. And two, that 62% of the people who were struggling to manage their workloads had experienced burnout “often” or “extremely often” in the previous three months.
The article was based on research with over 1500 respondents in 46 countries, across various industry sectors, roles and seniority levels. It concluded that “burnout is a global issue”.
When burnout sets in, time for thinking declines and, the quality of thinking deteriorates.
If you’re a leader with a team, department or an organisation looking up to you for vision, strategy, and leadership, you must make time to THINK!
Creating this mental space has many benefits including:
– Raising your productivity
– Increasing your creativity
– Increasing your problem-solving ability
– Evaluating the effectiveness of actions, results and, decisions – learning through reflection
So how do you find time to think? Here are a few suggestions…
1. Do something physical like walking, swimming or running
2. Engage in free form writing or journaling
3. Practise thinking out loud by talking with someone
4. Take time away from your work or your desk
5. Using your commute time to think rather than catching up on work
Let’s keep burnout at bay by finding time to think.