It's Your Choice.

Spend some time with any manager these days and you will feel like you are in a car that is revving its engine to start a drag race. There is urgency in the air, an underlying queasiness, an anticipation of speeding down the road in search of the finish line. Then they are off racing down the road and . . . the race doesn’t seem to end.

Every day managers juggle multiple priorities, huge workloads and competing demands. Their answer is to work through lunch, stay late, arrive early, answer email at night and keep their smartphone by the bedside. There doesn’t seem to be any downtime.

I’ve heard multiple responses for this dilemma. “That is the way the work world is now.” “The millennial generation likes to be plugged in all the time.” “I need to work like this if I want to get ahead.” ?“When I ask my boss what the priority is, she says everything.”

What if I said, it’s a choice? You’ve designed your work so that it takes all this time. And you can design otherwise.

Sue Shellenbarger’s Wall St. Journal article, If You Need to Work Better, Maybe Try Working Less, suggests another approach. She decided to take one entire day off from any work activity each weekend. At first, she felt more self-imposed pressure. Then she began to realize that she was getting more efficient and productive accomplishing her work. She planned and worked differently to accommodate that one day “work free” block of time.

A four-year study at Harvard Business School that required participants to take “predictable time off” yielded surprising results. Participants were more satisfied, produced better individual work and teamwork, and were more likely to stay with the company.

More importantly, communication and interpersonal connections between team members improved. The bottom line: participants were focused on how to work smarter in less time.

And it’s your choice. Many of us have learned to thrive on high adrenaline situations. It’s the only way we know how to work.

And yet, what if you thought differently about your work? Did you ever notice how efficient you become when you are getting ready for a vacation? Your prioritization and delegation rapidly improve. Suddenly it isn’t so hard to ask a direct report or colleague to cover a meeting for you.

Interestingly, to gain back some time, you need to first spend time thinking strategically. Ask yourself these questions:

• What is my true purpose in my job?
• What is going to provide the most value?
• Where can I get the most return on investment for my effort?
• What is wasting the most time for me?
• Where can I ask for help?
• How will I know I am successful?

After reviewing your answers, make a few choices. Understand that it won’t be easy at first. Track your progress. Ask someone to hold you accountable.

And most importantly, know what the result is you want to achieve. Is it more time for yourself, your family, a favorite activity? Do you want to feel more in control of your job responsibilities?

Do you just want to stop feeling like you are drag racing all the time? It’s your choice.