Moment of Truth

Extract of Mr. Narayana Murthy's Speech during Mentor Session:

LOVE YOUR JOB, BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR COMPANY BECAUSE YOUNEVER KNOW WHEN COMPANY STOPS LOVING YOU - Narayana Murthy

I know people who work 12 hours a day, six days a week, or more.

ome people do so because of a work emergency where the long hours areonly temporary. Other people I know have put in these hours for years.I don't know if they are working all these hours, but I do know they are in the officethis long. Others put in long office hours because they are addictedto the workplace. Whatever the reason for putting in overtime, workinglong hours over the long term is harmful to the person and to the organisation.

There are things managers can do to change this for everyone'sbenefit. Being in the office long hours, over long periods of time,makes way for potential errors. My colleagues who are in the officelong hours frequently make mistakes caused by fatigue. Correctingthese mistakes requires their time as well as the time and energy of others. I have seen people work Tuesday through Friday to correctmistakes made after 5 PM on Monday.

Another problem is that people who are in the office long hours arenot pleasant company.They often complain about other people (who aren't working as hard);they are irritable, or cranky, or even angry. Other people avoid them. Such behaviour poses problems, where work goes much better when peoplework together instead of avoiding one another.

As Managers, there are things we can do to help people leave the office. First and foremost is to set the example and go homeourselves. I work with a manager who chides people for working longhours. His words quickly lose their meaning when he sends thesechiding group e-mails with a time-stamp of 2 AM, Sunday.

Second is to encourage people to put some balance in their lives. For instance, here is a guideline I find helpful:

1) Wake up, eat a good breakfast, and go to work.

2) Work hard and smart for eight or nine hours.

3) Go home.

4) Read the books/comics, watch a funny movie, dig in the dirt, playwith your kids, etc.

5) Eat well and sleep well.

This is called recreating. Doing steps 1, 3, 4, and 5 enable step 2.

Working regular hours and recreating daily are simple concepts.

They are hard for some of us because that requires 'personal change'.

They are possible since we all have the power to choose to do them.

In considering the issue of overtime, I am reminded of my oldest son.When he was a toddler, if people were visiting the apartment, he wouldnot fall asleep no matter how long the visit, and no matter what time of day it was. He would fight off sleep until the visitors left. Itwas as if he was afraid that he would miss something. Once ourvisitors' left, he would go to sleep. By this time, however, he wasover tired and would scream through half the night with nightmares.He, my wife, and I, all paid the price for his fear of missing out.

Perhaps some people put in such long hours because they don't want tomiss anything when they leave the office. The trouble with this isthat events will never stop happening. That is life!! Things happen 24hours a day. Allowing for little rest is not ultimately practical.

So, take a nap.

Things will happen while you're asleep, but you will have the energyto catch up when you wake.

Hence "LOVE YOUR JOB BUT NEVER FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR COMPANY"