What Work Rules Do You Play By?
As a life and career coach I read and write about job searching, happiness, change, decision science, and productivity, to name a few of my favorite topics.
My favorite productivity/simplicity blog these days is Zen Habits by Leo Babauta. There's always something smart, cool, or, well - Zen - on this blog. Just knowing that Leo is a father of six and somehow manages to do what he does with an inspiring attitude makes it slightly more likely that I will become mellow someday (when I can fit that in!)
A few days ago he wrote about how traditional work tools and customs are being replaced more and more by new tools and new rules. It strikes me that many of these newer ways of working are much more likely to contribute to career happiness than the traditional ways.
Highlights of the new rules include:
- Collaborate on documents rather than email them.
- People don't have to be in an office.
- Small teams are better than large teams.
- Reduce meetings because most of them are a waste of time.
- Rest is as important as work.
- Focus, don't crank through a million tasks while multi-tasking.
- Consider that communication is a "stream" in which you wade, take what you need, and get out.
I love this last rule. We can't possibly process everything in our in-boxes like the olden days. There are too many emails, blog posts, IMs and Tweets to keep up with. We all need to admit that we're going to miss some stuff, and move on. Revolutionary!
There are work opportunities that offer some or all of the new rules. It's worth it to think about which ones resonate with you and see what you can do to adopt them!
Heather Mundell
Dream Big Coaching Services
www.dreambigcoaching.com
heather@dreambigcoaching.com
