One of my clients was telling me that she was concerned that one of the top performers in her team is perceived as lazy by her colleagues. To me, this seemed to be a contradiction, however, she went on to explain that this person regularly takes time out during day whilst others are busy ’slogging away’.
Over time, we have moved away from traditional manufacturing and now rely on our brains rather than our hands to work. Have we changed our working practices to perform to the best of our abilities?
The conversation above suggests not and indicates that unless we are seen to be doing something we are not working. In our modern knowledge economy, thinking is not seen as working.
There is a mountain of research to show that we are most productive and produce better quality when we work in short bursts. Equally having the freedom to think and reflect is the best way to be innovative.
This sparked my interest and I talked to a sales team. Interestingly, the two top performing sales people took time to reflect, think and plan. What was most interesting was that neither of them did it during work time. One did it whilst jogging and the other when he got home every evening.
How typical is this? I am very keen to know how time spent thinking is seen by you or by your organisation. Please let me know your thoughts.
Tags: Business Coaching