You need to work hard to succeed, but with wellness continuing to grow in society, it’s time to question how much is too much. According to Jeremy Greenberg, founder of Avenue Group, “Chronic overwork can have very negative impacts on our overall quality of life.”
Negative Impacts of Overworking
Besides the health risks like sleep deprivation and heart problems, overworking also disrupts your personal life with your friends and family. However, there are also reasons why overworking is bad for business.
It can't compensate for business flaws. Continuing to work extra hours while still using inaccurate methods will not lead to the company's overall success. "Whether you’re rank-and-file, a mid-level manager or an entrepreneur, there’s no guarantee that overworking will save a flawed business model or weak business acumen.”
It takes away from the big picture.“Business owners have endless to-do lists, but they often get caught up in the day-to-day minutiae or things that are time-intensive and don’t have high value,” Greenberg explains. Giving yourself time to reflect is critical to being successful because it can help differentiate what is high or low value.
It leads to health problems. Overworking takes a toll on the brain and body in the sense that it raises sleep deprivation, stress levels and caffeine intake just to name a few things.
It lowers performance levels. All of the sleep deprivation, fatigue and stress does a number on one's cognitive abilities. Thus, Greenberg explains how when someone becomes overworked they also become less productive from just simply being drained.
Related: Bringing Wellness To Your Workplace
How to Manage Overworking
Change your approach. Test out different techniques and systems to improve your efficiency at work. This will keep you from spending more time than you have working through a project in an inefficient matter that doesn’t work for you.
Take breaks. No matter how stressful work becomes allow yourself to take some breaks. Take your lunch during work, and make sure you give yourself downtime before bed instead of hopping back on to do a little extra work.
Say no sometimes. Know what work is and is not important for you to do. Be sure to delegate tasks to the proper person who should be doing them even if that is your superiors.
Measure metrics. Take some time during every day of the week to measure how many hours you’ve put in, where your stress level is and how productive you feel. Stay conscious of this every week to stay aware of your habits while working.
Depend on yourself. In short, no one else is going to make sure you’re not overworking yourself. You need to manage yourself accordingly to be sure you are completing tasks in a timely manner and keeping yourself from overworking.
