I used to train 20-somethings fresh out of college into the workforce of running small, project-based consulting teams. (Working with high-performing, motivated, recent college grads is the best job in the world)
I found that high-performers want to run hard. Additionally, I found the folks back at HQ were more than willing to load them up with even more work than their 40 hours per week. I kept having to tell the noobs, "Pace yourself. This is a marathon, not a sprint. I want you just as fresh and energetic a year from now as you are today"
So I am firmly on the author's side here. But I also think you can go too far. I see a lot of these articles, and I wonder if they're not just telling people what they already want to hear.
"Shouldn’t we stop pretending spending 50+ hours a week at the office or jobsite to be a good thing and recognize that real genius is finding a way to streamline the process and get that same job done in 25?"
He's creating a false dichotomy: work smart or work long hours. In fact, in many cases it's possible to be the smartest-working person in the shop and still have a lot of work to do. Being smarter doesn't give you a get-out-of-long-hours card. In fact, the drive and dedication that got many people to learn a lot is the exact same drive that will keep them there until late at night. In fact, many of the most valuable things we can do in life need exceptionally smart people working as hard as they can to pull off.
Remember, I'm on the author's side! But I also think that there's nothing wrong simply enjoying a project that calls for a lot of work -- as long as you don't do it to excess. I enjoy projects with the occasional crunch time every few months where folks work late and push through something fun. I like hiking up mountains, even though smart people just drive their cars up or look at photos on Facebook. Hard, difficult work to achieve a worthwhile goal is a good thing! Hard work all the time simply because it's expected or because you confuse hours with value is not.
Work life balance is important, but we need to be clear that certain parts of life actually require a lot of hard work. The guys studying to be brain surgeons don't sit around talking about how they should take more time out to go fishing. Simply because you make a choice to bust your ass doing something tough doesn't mean there's something wrong with you. It's your choice. Whatever your choice is, it just has to be sustainable and fit your values.
I found that high-performers want to run hard. Additionally, I found the folks back at HQ were more than willing to load them up with even more work than their 40 hours per week. I kept having to tell the noobs, "Pace yourself. This is a marathon, not a sprint. I want you just as fresh and energetic a year from now as you are today"
So I am firmly on the author's side here. But I also think you can go too far. I see a lot of these articles, and I wonder if they're not just telling people what they already want to hear.
"Shouldn’t we stop pretending spending 50+ hours a week at the office or jobsite to be a good thing and recognize that real genius is finding a way to streamline the process and get that same job done in 25?"
He's creating a false dichotomy: work smart or work long hours. In fact, in many cases it's possible to be the smartest-working person in the shop and still have a lot of work to do. Being smarter doesn't give you a get-out-of-long-hours card. In fact, the drive and dedication that got many people to learn a lot is the exact same drive that will keep them there until late at night. In fact, many of the most valuable things we can do in life need exceptionally smart people working as hard as they can to pull off.
Remember, I'm on the author's side! But I also think that there's nothing wrong simply enjoying a project that calls for a lot of work -- as long as you don't do it to excess. I enjoy projects with the occasional crunch time every few months where folks work late and push through something fun. I like hiking up mountains, even though smart people just drive their cars up or look at photos on Facebook. Hard, difficult work to achieve a worthwhile goal is a good thing! Hard work all the time simply because it's expected or because you confuse hours with value is not.
Work life balance is important, but we need to be clear that certain parts of life actually require a lot of hard work. The guys studying to be brain surgeons don't sit around talking about how they should take more time out to go fishing. Simply because you make a choice to bust your ass doing something tough doesn't mean there's something wrong with you. It's your choice. Whatever your choice is, it just has to be sustainable and fit your values.