Womenomics by Claire Shipman

Author:Claire Shipman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2009-04-11T04:00:00+00:00

news you can use

Guilt is a useless emotion that keeps you from achieving work-life sanity.

Changing the guilt soundtrack in your head will open the door to a powerful, life-changing little word: No. It’s one you need in order to master Womenomics.

If you don’t say “no” to some things you will end up doing everything.

CHAPTER FIVE

lazy like a fox: work smarter not harder

Work smarter, not harder—a concept as simple and elegant as e = mc2. Einstein’s equation changed the world; our foolproof Womenomics formula will change your universe. What they have in common is a new understanding of energy. If you’re going to work less and still achieve, you need to understand where to direct your precious energy resources. Remember: your time and energy are finite commodities; you need to use them to maximum effect.

That’s where our fox comes in. Foxes are precise and cunning, a disposition we applaud. They know instinctively how to sniff out the best opportunities, a skill that allows them to hunt when and how they want, but with minimum effort. They aren’t given to wasting excess energy, but they do know when to put on a sudden spurt to maximize their chances of a kill, or an escape!

This is an overarching and intrinsic aspect of Womenomics: you need to develop ways to get greater returns on the investment of your time.

Or think about it this way: you’re shopping, and you have $300 to spend. Should you fritter it all away, as you roam around, on junky but captivating earrings and necklaces from street vendors, or should you focus on making that really big quality purchase of a knockout dress? That dress will get you more bang than the cheap but entertaining bling. It’s the same with your time. It’s a critical commodity.

The first major practical step to becoming smarter with your time is to rethink the relationship between time and productivity. Kathleen Christensen of the Sloan Foundation notes that the very idea of productivity measured by time on a clock is starting to look antiquated. “For a very long time the notion was that, the longer the hours you work, the more productive you are. And I think that there is an increasing awareness that it’s not necessarily how long you work, but how smart you work. I have certainly seen cases where people have reduced their hours and stayed as productive.”

Kathleen is exactly right in this respect, but even she could go one step further. It’s not just possible to reduce raw hours and maintain (or even increase) your productivity—it’s absolutely necessary. As you work smarter not harder, you’ll see that your whole life will begin to improve. Reduced stress, a greater sense of fulfillment, fewer distractions, and less worry will continue to improve your productivity at work, and your improved results-oriented performance will, in turn, free up yet more time. Over the next three chapters, we’ll show you exactly how to work smarter on the small stuff, the big stuff, and even on a newly negotiated flexible deal.

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