A good worker gets results. They throw themselves into their job, working at full capacity all the time. They work hour by hour, measuring their success by how much time they put in.
Sounds perfect, right? There’s just one problem – the person described above does not exist. Not really.
They’re an ideal born out of an outdated concept of productivity, one which has its roots in a time when 9-to-5 jobs were the standard, and anything outside that narrow scope was viewed as abnormal. But we now live in an era of hyperconnectivity. An era where freelancing and remote work are increasingly becoming the norm, and workers increasingly demand flexibility in their professional lives.
Yet for some reason, we seem unwilling to admit to ourselves that the old way of measuring success in the workplace – how many hours someone is willing to put in for their employer – is not only obsolete but actively toxic.
Being productive does not mean you never stop working. It does not mean you’re constantly pumping out project after project at a staggering, breakneck pace. It does not mean that, during work hours, you exist in a constant flow state, never stopping to take even a momentary break.
It means working at your own pace. It means finishing the work you’ve committed yourself to in a timely manner and meeting your deadlines in whatever way works best for you. It means getting enough done that you’re satisfied and fulfilled without being burnt out and overwhelmed.
And perhaps most importantly, it means constantly striving to find ways you can work more efficiently and effectively.
“Freedom is the end result of productivity,” explains author Michael Hyatt. “If you’ve got a productivity system that’s not making you feel more free, you’ve got the wrong system. To be truly productive, you need the freedom to focus on the things that matter most.”
In other words, if you’re putting in upwards of 50 or 60 hours a week, you might be doing something very wrong. Being truly productive doesn’t mean being busy. It means being smart with the time you work.
If you can get a project that would ordinarily take a few days done in a few hours, you should be proud of that. If you only work 20 hours a week and manage to finish everything that needs to be done, that’s awesome. Everyone works at a different pace, and everyone has their own workflow – find yours, and understand that you don’t need to measure it against others. A good worker gets results. They know their capabilities and their limits and understand how and where to apply their efforts for maximum effect. And perhaps most importantly, they understand that success isn’t a matter of working more hours, but of maximizing the hours you do work.