There was a lot of talk about work-life balance when we worked from home during the pandemic.
There were plenty of positives. Flexible hours. Time saved on commuting. We could work in our PJs from the kitchen.
The sale of leisurewear went through the roof as people moved to online shopping. Even my mum discovered that joy and kept the postie busy with deliveries.
But working from home also removed the boundaries of a physical office. We could log on at any time, day and night, and work for too long.
Health restrictions limited our social lives and stopped us from taking holidays.
We took on more. We were busy and burnt out. Often, our productivity fell. We were busy without moving forward.
We blamed it on stress, the pandemic, and uncertain times.
Undoubtedly, we were all under pressure, but maybe the way we were working was also to blame.
Has it changed as many of us moved back to the workplace?
Busy work can be exhausting. Lots of low-value work takes up an enormous amount of time and energy.
In their book Work Smarter Not Harder, Jack Collis and Michael LeBoeuf argue that most workers suffer from cognitive overload. They have too many choices and a lack of direction.
They say we are better at achieving our goals if we work less and work smarter.
I agree.