Idle Time
Is hump day the idle time our working week needs?
Idle time, for humans, is a paradox.
If we were machines - which we’re not - it may make sense to be measuring our idle time.
After all, maximising productive run-time and outputs is paramount …
when you are a machine. Which we humans are not.
The machine analogy in our workplaces is so entrenched that we often don’t notice how our expectations, and words, reflect this.
When we find ourselves in idle mode, thoughts of laziness and procrastination come to mind. We place a negative connotation on our idleness. We talk of ‘hump day’ because we find it difficult to keep up the productive pace. When we are working at, what is judged, sub-optimum, we feel the pressure to keep pushing through.
We keep going in this way because we believe we have to. Our inner voice, and those within our workplaces, often reinforce the message of productivity at all costs, and that anything less is a sign of our shortcomings or failure.
Is it any wonder that stress, burnout and turnover is rife.
What if we recognised (celebrated, even!) the valuable role idle time plays in maintaining our energy, enthusiasm and engagement with our work, and in doing so, reclaimed this vital human need?
What if a little idle time is precisely what we need mid-working-week to keep us humans running well and productively?
What if, indeed.
Now there’s a change worth making, don’t you agree.