Get More Done By Working Less
I think the 40 hour workweek is a waste…
Nobody has the attention span to work on ANYTHING for 8 hours straight in a day. I read a stat somewhere that on an average work day, most people only actually do 2 hours of “real work”. The rest of the time is spent browsing the web, checking emails, chatting on instant messenger, talking with co-workers, spent “in meetings” and other non productive work just to fill up an 8 hour shift.
I wonder who came up with this schedule for employees?
Even though I haven’t worked a 9-5 job in many years due to my internet business success, I still carry on the same values I’ve always held about how much work time is optimal. Personally, I can get more work done in 3 hours than almost anyone who works an 8 hour shift. So, that’s what I try to do with my internet businesses as well. Here’s how I do it…
Think about what goal you need to achieve for any given day. Make a quick bullet point listing of each task you must get done. Next, turn off your cell phone, your instant messenger system, close your door and do not allow any distractions whatsoever. Then, you just dive right in.
When you are 100% fully focused on a particular task, you can get it done so much faster than if you have distractions around you. This technique is what I call my 3 hour work block and it works amazingly well.
In many cases, by blocking out a certain amount of time like this, I’m able to get ALL of my work done for the day in just three hours. And I still get more done than I would in a typical 8 hour workday without this extreme focus.
I don’t care if you work a job or if you have a full time internet business, try this and see what happens. It’s very refreshing when you start at 9am, plow through all of your tasks and by noon, you are basically DONE working for the day.
I don’t recommend working this hard for more than 3 hours at a time because you will get burned out. If I’m a little behind or want to accomplish more and get ahead, I simply work a 3 hour block, take 3 or 4 hours off to relax and then do another 3 hour block.
Still only working a total of 6 hours, but the amount of work I get done is incredible.
Comments
Emma July 28th, 2008
Makes sense to me now if I would only buckle down and do the 3 hours.
Adam July 28th, 2008
I do this at work (yes I work 9-5). I essentially don’t answer my cell or answer emails unless their critical for sections. I then get everything I need to get done very quickly. Once I’ve completed my task I’ll answer the phone, check my emails and do other smaller tasks that I need to do.
It works rather well.
RD July 28th, 2008
I could probably fit my workday in 3 hours if i tried, damn i waste too much time!
RD
http://blogpowers.com
Sell More Art Online July 29th, 2008
Great article. For those of you that really want to challenge your minset on teh time you spend on working to make money, you could read the Four Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss. He went from 40 hours a week to just 4 and managed to make his business more profitable by doing so. Worth a read: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/
Richard Farrar July 29th, 2008
I find this works well for me as well, but if I’m really focused on something, I can go for hours without having a break.
Not having distractions (social media???) is definitely the key, which is much easier to achieve in a home office environment compared to your conventional commercial workplace.
Michael July 29th, 2008
Thanks for sharing your ideas, Max!
I tried this for myself at home and it works pretty well, especially when you manage to turn off ALL the distraction.
In my opinion, working with to-do lists is also very important here, so you know what should be done today.
Keep it up,
Michael
Ultimate Blogging Experiment July 29th, 2008
the hardest part for everyone will be their addiction to messengers on the Internet and their cell phones. It is really hard to turn those things off because those are the ways we communicate to the world. If you can just get rid of those two distractions you can get so much more done. I always think about what I’m going to do during my day while I take my morning shower.
Brett July 29th, 2008
i’m gonna give this a try and see how it goes. I’ve really been havin some trouble being productive lately
Denise Clarke July 29th, 2008
You are right … we waste so much time at work … I guess that is why we should be doing something we love!
1 Niche, 2 Niche, 3 Niche 4...How Many Niche Sites is Too Many? July 29th, 2008
This is really a great post, this so applies to me, I am usually at my computer working my home business for at least 12 hours a day, LOT of the time I f’in off checking emails and dealing with constant distractions, and often I do not get done what I really need to get done for that day, I will follow your guide, and I think it will work for me.
Thanks,
JR
Codrut Turcanu - AdSenseProfitTips.com July 30th, 2008
Max, I do agree with you. It’s all about 80/20 rule.
It is very true that if you work smarter you have to work less and if you work dumber then you have to work more. Focusing your priorities makes the real difference.
Winning Startups July 30th, 2008
Yeah, the 9-5 or 8-5 workday is torture but it pays the bills for most people. I think the Europeans do it right, taking a long siesta in the afternoons.
blog4booty July 31st, 2008
I agree with a lot of that actually… I think a certain amount of your day should be set to “full work mode” and that is when you should cut all distractions and get down to business… I think there are other times though, mainly when i’m doing research, when i’ll fire up the instant messaging programs and do the research I normally do while I can relax. I think that’s the best way to take in information.
Love the blog!
Big G Killer July 31st, 2008
Great article, and I completely agree. Having worked the 8 hour day for a long time, it is so refreshing to be working in my own time. If you’re not careful though you can end up working more hours than you were before you started IM if you don’t focus.
CanMexDave August 1st, 2008
Max what you say is so true. I worked as an instructor supervisor for several years and I assure you there is a reason why lectures and presentations are set at 45-50 minutes. I noticed that when you’re trying to absorb something that no matter how entertaining the instruction is when you hit an hour you just aren’t there any more.
You talk about some of the things I really needed to do when I was building my business, namely setting goals and turning off distractions. Like checking my e-mail once a day. One other thing I used to do is I would reward myself. I would allow myself to play once I completed certain tasks. It never seem to work if I wanted to play first and then do work.
Make Money August 3rd, 2008
Yep, you’re right. A couple of months ago I finally got around to reading the four hour workweek, and literally quintupled my productivity. It was almost surreal. Now I’m the most productive person in the office, and I have way more time for internet marketing. Win-win!
Andy Crofford August 3rd, 2008
What if you don’t have the attention span to work three hours in a row?
j. noronha August 4th, 2008
I think 8 hours shifts come from the idea that if you have a 3 hours workday, people would only accomplish 45min “real work”.
Rebecca Laffar-Smith August 6th, 2008
As a freelance writer others in my field and I gather regularly to do what we call, “Writing Bursts”. These are fifteen minute bursts where we shut out all distractions and WRITE. Usually the topic is planned ahead of time and it’s phenominal how many words can be written in such a short burst of time.
With the constant bombardment of media and distractions, many of us have shorter attention spans making us less productive over long terms of dedicated work. By committing to just fifteen minutes at a time you can build up your attention span and increase productivity.
Andy - Mr MultiVar August 6th, 2008
What I aim to do is complete at least one money-making activity per day even if I have to work only 30 minutes to complete the task. You can actually plan this activity while you are in bed and thinking about getting up!
I use the bullet point technique too.
Ideally you complete more than 1 activity to push you forward in a day, but 1 is better than none. I don’t mean that you actually make some money by immediately completing your task, but it is a way forward that you need to do to proceed with your plan as opposed to something like cleaning your teeth.
RogerV August 9th, 2008
Max, ever read the 4 hour work-week? All about simplifying your life, outsourcing, using technology to actually work less and just do better work. Great concept.
Armand August 24th, 2008
That’s right, most of time wasted for chatting in IM or browsing to find something not useful for our work, even if we’re in a deadline.
paulette September 14th, 2008
Good idea. The less you feel harass the more productive you get
Marketing September 16th, 2008
We work 12 hour days at our office, but we can take breaks as we wish during the day if we feel. Imagine if all business just did 3 hours per day it would be mayhem especially with all the deadlines at this time of the day.
I guess it is all depending on the type of business that you are in. It could be fun to work for a few hours a day.
Marketing Directory September 20th, 2008
Yes really it is great to work in 3 hrs only for total time. Any person wants more return doing less work. Actually I also want this. You told some great tips here which I will try. Concentration is difficult in this multimedia world.
Armen Shirvanian October 13th, 2008
This material sure brings up the point that individuals can set up a focused period of time. I would say that it should be planned in advance so that one does not start off the period of time and then get interrupted shortly after. An interruption during heavy focus can cut off the whole procedure.
laundry November 30th, 2008
Like me that had small kids around, working at day is quite hard task. All time that I had only when they’re sleep. So my work only start at 5 a.m in the morning till they are wake up.