How We Work Is Changing Because Of Technology & We Will Have More Time On Our Hands
There will come a day when we will only work four hours daily. We may already be in that situation, only pretending to work for eight hours a day to appease our boss needs to see us do so. In most jobs that require us to do work online, our work is usually completed by the middle of the day.
Bureaucracy, endless meetings, time checking our email inbox, and office banter during lunch tend to take up the rest of the workday. The average American worker spends more time pretending to work and appearing productive than they do actually working. Most of us get paid to be bored.
There are restrictions on how we work. We have to be productive members of our teams, not because they impose total concentration and attention during work hours, but because the system of work right now is all about appearances.
In most situations, we can’t leave the office and go home once all of our tasks are complete. This could come at the cost of losing our pay for the day or worse. We are working in jobs that haven’t fully adapted to the acceleration of change that is happening. We are also not preparing ourselves for a time when our jobs do shift and we only have four hours of work per day.
How would your day look if you only had half of the time each day to work? How would you spend your time?
Shifting priorities, experiencing more fulfillment, and maximizing time
When we experience restrictions and constraints, our creativity increases. We use our attention with more purpose. Distractions become more noticeable. Meetings don’t become as frequent because our communication becomes clear and faster.
As a result of this change, the work we are doing becomes more purposeful and enjoyable. Questions begin to come into focus, such as, “How can I get this task done with half the time I usually take?” Things that seem urgent at first are deferred until a later date. Most tasks that are communicated as urgent are tested more, we take our time more seriously.
All high priority items would be tackled first. This would lead to more impact and increase our overall usefulness to our team and clients. we would delegate more. we would drop projects that aren’t fruitful and fulfilling. We would be more selective in the projects that we choose to take on in the future. And we would consider the requirements more and think about the price for taking on tasks assigned.
We will enjoy work more but, we won’t obsess over it during our off-hours. We’ll experience life more. For we are not mechanisms but, people. And when we aren’t working we will have to find time for fun and for experiencing the nuances of life. Work for work’s sake will be obsolete and completely unnecessary.
If we don’t begin to consider our daily workdays looking like this, the transition will be a painful one. Instead, when the transition takes place, we should enjoy it for the opportunities it will bring.
Jobs aren’t being replaced, they are changing and evolving. As our idea of work is redefined and new skills are required of us, we also need to start adopting a new paradigm of thought. The sooner, the better.
