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posted by janrinok on Sunday August 03 2014, @04:49AM   Printer-friendly
from the moderation-in-all-things,-including-moderation dept.

An interesting writeup on Harvard Business Publishing blog by Michael Harris, discusses what most of us have already known, but each of us have colleagues (or worse, bosses) who still don't get it:

"In early April a series of reports appeared online in the United States and the United Kingdom lamenting the "lazy French." A new labor law in France had apparently banned organizations from e-mailing their employees after 6 p.m. In fact, it turned out to be more a case of "lazy journalists" than "lazy French": as The Economist explained, the "law" was not a law at all but a labor agreement aimed at improving health among a specific group of professionals, and there wasn't even a hard curfew for digital communication.

Like all myths, however, this one revealed a set of abiding values subscribed to by the folk who perpetuated it. Brits and Americans have long suspected that the French (and others) are goofing off while they the good corporate soldiers continue to toil away. They're proud about it too. A Gallup poll, released in May, found that most U.S. workers see their constant connection with officemates as a positive. In the age of the smartphone, there's no such thing as "downtime," and we profess to be happier and more productive for it.

Are we, though? After reviewing thousands of books, articles and papers on the topic and interviewing dozens of experts in fields from neurobiology and psychology to education and literature, I don't think so. When we accept this new and permanent ambient workload checking business news in bed or responding to coworkers' emails during breakfast we may believe that we are dedicated, tireless workers. But, actually, we're mostly just getting the small, easy things done. Being busy does not equate to being effective."

 
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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Sunday August 03 2014, @08:02AM

    by frojack (1554) on Sunday August 03 2014, @08:02AM (#76857) Journal

    So why are so few French workers happy? Too much time on their hands?
    And they work their asses off in Columbia and Brazil, and aren't very productive but still quite happy.

    http://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2013/10/30/the-pursuit-of-happiness/ [forbes.com]

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  • (Score: 2) by mcgrew on Sunday August 03 2014, @03:11PM

    by mcgrew (701) <publish@mcgrewbooks.com> on Sunday August 03 2014, @03:11PM (#76906) Homepage Journal

    So why are so few French workers happy? Too much time on their hands?

    Maybe it's because I'm not exactly normal, but I was perplexed when people, hearing I was retiring, say "but what will you do? You're going to be bored!"

    My answer to "but what will you do" was "any damned thing I want, when and where I want, and nothing I don't want to do."

    Six months into retirement I found I was right. Perhaps it's the dim or the lazy who fear having too much time? I certainly don't understand that view from a nerd; we love to read, learn, tinker. I don't understand how any nerd could ever become bored.

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    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 03 2014, @04:58PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Sunday August 03 2014, @04:58PM (#76923)

      Perhaps it's the dim or the lazy who fear having too much time?

      No, its just people not having any comprehension of what its like to have free time since they've been slaves their entire lives. They've been conditioned to equate "not working" with "not eating", so the idea of not working is completely alien to them.

    • (Score: 2) by frojack on Sunday August 03 2014, @09:50PM

      by frojack (1554) on Sunday August 03 2014, @09:50PM (#76987) Journal

      But you are retired.
      Different thing, than having to sit around 3 days and go to work 4. Not enough time to get away. Too much time to stay.

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      • (Score: 2) by ticho on Sunday August 03 2014, @11:22PM

        by ticho (89) on Sunday August 03 2014, @11:22PM (#77013) Homepage Journal

        Sure, you can't go on a vacation abroad during those 3 days, but nothing is really stopping you from using those days to relax and pursue your hobbies or whatnot. Incidentally, I am taking every Friday off this summer, so I'm talking from first hand experience.

      • (Score: 2) by SlimmPickens on Monday August 04 2014, @12:55AM

        by SlimmPickens (1056) on Monday August 04 2014, @12:55AM (#77040)

        having to sit around 3 days and go to work 4

        Well that's what I have (and short hours) and I consider it optimal. Enough money to do all the things I like. Plenty of time to ride my motorbike, read, tinker with my network, explore math.

        My freind just offerred me a job in bc/dr and despite the higher earning potential and the enjyoment I would get from working in larger and better resourced teams I'm really struggling with it from a quality of life point of view.

        • (Score: 2) by SlimmPickens on Monday August 04 2014, @02:45AM

          by SlimmPickens (1056) on Monday August 04 2014, @02:45AM (#77067)

          I have to add making bacon to the list of things that I like. Some of you may remember I've already been encouraging people to make bacon.

    • (Score: 2) by VLM on Monday August 04 2014, @09:12PM

      by VLM (445) on Monday August 04 2014, @09:12PM (#77363)

      For political / economic reasons we confound education and vocational training.

      However, what you're describing is what used to be called education, giving yourself a lifetime of interesting things to think about.

      Used to be, only the aristocrats had the luxury of not having to work to eat, so only they got higher educations. Then higher ed became a weird stealth way to select kids of the upper classes and aspirational middle classes. Leading after some time to higher ed being a combo of a replacement for ineffective high schools and strictly vocational training and complete disparagement of the liberal arts. Aside from the whole "higher ed as a license to print money" racket.

      An uneducated aristocrat would probably go insane. A retired uneducated guy would probably go insane. I have an uncle in law who spent his last 20 years watching TV, what a waste. An educated guy is never bored, for better or worse, and an aristocrat / retired educated guy just has more time to do self directed educated stuff. Have fun, don't get bored!

      • (Score: 2) by mcgrew on Monday August 04 2014, @10:22PM

        by mcgrew (701) <publish@mcgrewbooks.com> on Monday August 04 2014, @10:22PM (#77386) Homepage Journal

        Indeed. It makes me think of my maternal grandfather who, after facing mandatory retirement, just sat down and waited to die.

        It took a quarter of a century.

        --
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  • (Score: 2) by umafuckitt on Monday August 04 2014, @08:18PM

    by umafuckitt (20) on Monday August 04 2014, @08:18PM (#77336)

    And you believe in how they are quantifying happiness? I certainly don't.