The Eight-Hour Workday Isn’t Productive Any Longer

The eight-hour workday isn’t something that works well in most countries and it truly doesn’t work well for your own productivity.

Why do so many companies insist you work longer hours and pay time and a half when your productivity wanes at a certain point? It seems counterintuitive to pay more just because you’re at the job longer. To get more out of yourself and those you work with, a shorter workday is proven to be effective.

Follow the Productivity of Other Countries

In the most productive countries in the world, employees do not work eight hours per day. In fact, the most productive countries have the shortest workdays. An example of this is Luxembourg where most people are working close to 30 hours a week and making more money on average than people working longer hours and longer workweeks.

Use Your Eight-Hour Workday to Create more Quality Production

You might not be in a position to move away from your eight-hour workday, but what you can do is create an environment of quality rather than one of quantity. If you’re going to work eight hours, you might as well get the most out of it and spend some time on personal growth within the company which can advance your career and helps you be more successful.

Become More Results-Oriented

If you have the pleasure of creating your schedule and working when you want, you need to make the most of your working time. This will help you have the workday you want. There’s a good chance you can work for six hours and get as much done as many others putting in an eight-hour workday. Why is that? If you’re results-oriented, you’re going to put the work where it needs to be.

The Difference in Creating Results

Do you work in a way that allows you to make more money for better production or do you make the same amount regardless of how much you get done? If you’re getting paid for your time and not your production, there’s little incentive for you to be results-oriented. On the other hand, if you’re paid to produce and get things done, you’re going to focus on the results.

Change Your Work Habits

If you’ve scheduled yourself an eight-hour workday simply because you think this is what you’re supposed to do, it’s time for a change. You can be more effective by putting 100 percent of your focus on your work in short spurts rather than having 75 percent of your focus for the entire day. Carve out one to three hours without distraction to put in the deeply focused work that you need to get done. If you do this, you’ll be amazed at how productive you can be.

Employ an 80/20 Rule Instead of Settling for an eight-hour workday

The 80/20 rule is something we use and apply to various aspects of our lives. In this case, if you spend 20 percent of your energy and time on your work and 80 percent on self-improvement, you’ll find that you have more time for the things you want to do. During that time when you’re spending 20 percent of your time on work, make sure you’re giving 100 percent of your focus on the work you need to get done.

Get Off to a Good Start Every Day

The best way to maximize your efficiency and productivity is to stay completely engaged and focused at the start of your day. The first three hours are crucial to your success during the day. To do this, you need to create an environment that allows you to be the most productive. This can be a quiet room with your phone turned off and a little music playing in the background, or it can be a place with a lot of white noise around you so that you can drown it out. The location and environment need to be to your liking and help you be the most productive you can be.

Take a Break When the First Portion is Done

Rather than trying to get things done during an eight-hour workday, schedule a few hours of work, put all your energy into it, and get things done. When this time is completed, give yourself a break of an hour or so and disconnect from the work during the break. Doing this will make it easier to focus once again when it’s time to get back to work.