• CEPro_logo_blue-new
  • TOPICS
      • News
        • People & Places
        • Product Briefs
      • Projects
      • Events
      • Control
        • Central Vac
        • Energy/Power
        • HVAC/IAQ
        • Interfaces/Devices
        • Lighting
        • Motorized Shades
        • Whole House Systems
      • Audio/Video
        • Audio/Video
        • AV Accessories
        • AV Racks
        • Cabling
        • Displays
        • Furniture
        • Headphones
        • Home Theater
        • Media
        • Mounts/Lifts
        • Multiroom AV
        • Projectors/Screens
        • Speakers/Subwoofers
        • Wireless AV
      • Security
        • Access Control
        • Alarms/Sensors
        • Services/Platforms
        • Surveillance/Cameras
      • Business Support
        • Associations/Buying Groups
        • Cell Phone Boosters
        • Distributors/Reps
        • Operations
        • Recurring Revenue
        • Research
        • Sales/Marketing
        • Software Services
        • Tools/Testers
      • Networking
        • Cellular
        • Devices/Equipment
        • Wireless
        • Wired/Installation
      • Markets
        • Builders
        • Commercial
        • Design
        • Europe
        • Outdoors
        • Resimercial
        • Wellness
      • CE Pro Hub Pages
        • Bose
        • Savant
        • Inside Sound United
  • PRODUCTS
  • RESOURCES
    • Reports/Downloads
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Webcasts
    • Podcasts
    • Integrator Jobs
    • Digital Edition
    • CE Pro-iQ
  • SUBSCRIBE
    • CEDIA SHOW UPDATES
    • CEPRO PRINT EDITION
    • CEPRO DIGITAL EDITION
    • CEPRO NEWSLETTERS
  • DISCOVER
    • CEDIA Expo
      • September 29 – October 1
        Dallas, TX
      • VISIT SITE
    • KBIS
      • February 8 – 10
        Orlando, FL
      • VISIT SITE
    • Total Tech Summit
      • October 26 – 28
        Orlando, FL
      • VISIT SITE
    • Commercial Integrator
      • VISIT SITE
    • Security Sales
      • VISIT SITE
    • Tech Decisions
      • VISIT SITE
    • Campus Safety
      • VISIT SITE
    • Design Well
      • VISIT SITE
    • KBB Online
      • VISIT SITE
    • AV-iQ
      • VISIT SITE
    • CE Pro-iQ
      • VISIT SITE
  • Search
  • TOPICS
    • News
      • People & Places
      • Product Briefs
    • Projects
    • Events
    • Control
      • Central Vac
      • Energy/Power
      • HVAC/IAQ
      • Interfaces/Devices
      • Lighting
      • Motorized Shades
      • Whole House Systems
    • Audio/Video
      • Audio/Video
      • AV Accessories
      • AV Racks
      • Cabling
      • Displays
      • Furniture
      • Headphones
      • Home Theater
      • Media
      • Mounts/Lifts
      • Multiroom AV
      • Projectors/Screens
      • Speakers/Subwoofers
      • Wireless AV
    • Security
      • Access Control
      • Alarms/Sensors
      • Services/Platforms
      • Surveillance/Cameras
    • Business Support
      • Associations/Buying Groups
      • Cell Phone Boosters
      • Distributors/Reps
      • Operations
      • Recurring Revenue
      • Research
      • Sales/Marketing
      • Software Services
      • Tools/Testers
    • Networking
      • Cellular
      • Devices/Equipment
      • Wireless
      • Wired/Installation
    • Markets
      • Builders
      • Commercial
      • Design
      • Europe
      • Outdoors
      • Resimercial
      • Wellness
    • CE Pro Hub Pages
      • Savant
      • Bose
      • Inside Sound United
  • PRODUCTS
  • RESOURCES
    • Reports/Downloads
    • Buyer’s Guide
    • Webcasts
    • Podcasts
    • Integrator Jobs
    • Digital Edition
    • CE Pro-IQ
  • SUBSCRIBE
    • CEPRO PRINT EDITION
    • CEPRO DIGITAL EDITION
    • CEPRO NEWSLETTERS
    • CEDIA SHOW UPDATES
  • DISCOVER
    • Cedia Expo
      VISIT SITE
    • Commercial Integrator
      VISIT SITE
    • Security Sales
      VISIT SITE
    • Tech Decisions
      VISIT SITE
    • Campus Safety
      VISIT SITE
    • Design Well
      VISIT SITE
    • Total Tech Summit
      VISIT SITE
    • KBB Online
      VISIT SITE
    • AV-iQ
    • CE Pro-iQ
M
POPULAR SEARCHES
News
Projects
Control
Audio Video
Security
Business Support
Markets
SUBSCRIBE CEDIA EXPO CEPro-iQ
Business Support | Operations
October 12, 2020

Burning the Midnight Oil Does Not Ensure You’re a Productive Employee

Apple CEO Tim Cook and Spotify CEO Daniel Ek suggest work-life balance may be key to professional growth and productivity.
D. Craig MacCormack  
Article:
Business Support | Operations
October 12, 2020

Burning the Midnight Oil Does Not Ensure You’re a Productive Employee

You probably work with—or for—someone whose work identity is as the person who gets to the office—or virtual office these days—before anyone and therefore cruises past the cubicle farm on the way to the exit before you’ve finished your lunch.

Maybe that person has read about how successful CEOs at some of the world’s biggest companies wake up before any rooster and flips their genius switch to the on position for another day of innovation and they figure it’s about the hours that person is working, not what they’re actually doing.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek said in a recent interview he doesn’t start his workday until 10:30 a.m. most of the time and he doesn’t regret that one bit. In fact, he doesn’t even wake up until 6:30 a.m., which coincidentally is when I used to wake up when I drove to CI World Headquarters five days a week.

Here’s more about Ek and how his counterintuitive approach has helped him build one of the world’s most successful companies:


Actually seeing his family and tending to his physical health and mental growth until halfway to noon might sound like heresy, but Ek isn’t the only big name to keep a similar schedule.

Cast Your Vote for the 2023 CE Pro Quest for Quality Awards!

CE Pro urges integrators to recognize their suppliers that go above and beyond to deliver premium support and service. Cast your vote today to recognize the services (not the products) from your favorite manufacturers and distributors.

Cast your vote today!

Jeff Bezos has described puttering around in the mornings, having breakfast with his kids and waiting for his brain to get up to speed around 10 before doing any serious decision-making.

Should you conclude from these two counterexamples that the early birds are wrong and the right approach is leisurely mornings? Absolutely not. The right takeaway is instead to call a truce in the morning-routine propaganda war.

Science shows that our circadian rhythms, which govern when we feel sleepy and when we feel alert and creative, are largely hard-wired. While one person might be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at dawn, another is a useless zombie.

That has nothing to do with willpower and everything to do with the balance of chemicals in your body.

And it’s not just biology that makes reading about anybody else’s morning routine pointless. Part of why Ek has a slow start to the day, for example, is because while he’s based in Europe much of his staff is Stateside.

That means with the time difference his most important meetings land in the afternoon. Getting his thinking done in the morning makes sense for him.

Biological and logistical factors combine to make everyone’s situation unique. Read up on other people’s morning routines if you find it entertaining, but don’t think these articles can tell you anything about how you should structure your own day.


As someone who spent most of his work life waking up around 8 a.m. and getting to the office some time around 10, knowing the unpredictable nature of the local news business could mean I work 10 hours or more on that day, getting into the 9 to 5 routine took some adjustment for me.


Related: How to 'Lead From Home' During the Coronavirus Outbreak

I got used to in part because I had to get my daughter to school every morning, then head off to work for the day. The fact we’re both at home five days a week now means I’ve had to show more willpower to stick to that routine, but I’ve done pretty well with it since mid-March.

I’m lucky to work for a company that allows some level of flexibility in terms of work schedules anyway and I know if I needed to change mine for any reason, it wouldn’t cause any problems or throw up any red flags.

It’s too bad more company leaders don’t realize that the time on the clock doesn’t always dictate the hours when their employees will be their most productive. Let’s hope the hybrid model of working has helped to drill that point into their heads since the coronavirus outbreak though.

Unless there’s a specific deadline that your employees will miss if they’re not on the clock at 8, why not just focus on the fact they’re finishing their work and doing it in a way that’s most productive for them? If your employees at their most productive, they’ll get more done than you expect in many cases.


This article originally appeared on our sister publication Commercial Integrator‘s website.

ARTICLE TOPICS

Business Support • Operations

ARTICLE TAGS

Business Resource

SHARE

Share On Facebook
Share On Twitter
Share On Linkedin
Share On Whatsapp
Share Via Email
Copy URL
← Previous Article Next Article →
Article Amplifiers/ReceiversAV AccessoriesCablingControlDevices/EquipmentDisplaysEnergy/PowerEventsHome TheaterHVAC/IAQInterfaces/DevicesISELightingMotorized ShadesMultiroom AVNetworkingNewsProductsProjectors/ScreensResimercialSlideshowSpeakers/SubwoofersWhole-House SystemsWireless

2023 Top New Technology (TNT) Awards Announced at ISE

This year’s batch of Top New Technologies (TNT) Awards@ISE honored winners in the Residential segment, unveiled in conjunction with ISE 2023.
Article ControlInterfaces/DevicesNetworkingWhole-House SystemsWireless

Beyond Matter: The Past, Present and Future of Home Standards

Dave Kaufman reflects on the potential standards have to benefit consumers, professionals and the smart home industry at large.
Article Amplifiers/ReceiversAV AccessoriesCablingControlDevices/EquipmentDisplaysEnergy/PowerEventsHome TheaterHVAC/IAQInterfaces/DevicesISELightingMotorized ShadesMultiroom AVNetworkingNewsProductsProjectors/ScreensResimercialSlideshowSpeakers/SubwoofersWhole-House SystemsWireless

2023 Top New Technology (TNT) Awards Announced at ISE

This year’s batch of Top New Technologies (TNT) Awards@ISE honored winners in the Residential segment, unveiled in conjunction with ISE 2023.
Article Amplifiers/ReceiversAudio/VideoDistributors/RepsHome TheaterMediaMultiroom AVProductsSpeakers/SubwoofersWhole-House SystemsWireless AV

I Previewed the New 8K Sony ES Receiver Lineup (and Was Blown Away)

The latest models of Sony's professional grade receiver line offer range, versatility, and most importantly to installers, simplicity.

SHOW NEWSLETTER

Sign Up

CE Pro

Subscribe Sign Up

Content Types

News
Products
Projects
Companies
Downloads
Webcasts
Podcasts
Events

Specials

IntegratorJobs
CEDIA EXPO
CE Pro 100
CE Pro Summit
Awards Programs

Company Info

About
Contact Us
Customer Service
Media Solutions & Advertising

Subscribe

Magazine
Newsletters
Digital Edition

Connect

Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
YouTube
RSS Feed

Categories

AUDIO/VIDEO
AV Accessories
AV Racks
Amplifiers/Receivers
Cabling
Displays
Furniture
Mounts/Lifts
Multiroom AV
Projector Screens
Speakers/Subwoofers
Wireless AV
CONTROL
Central Vac
Energy/Power
Interfaces/Devices
HVAC/IAQ
Lighting
Motorized Shades
Whole-House Systems
NETWORKING
Cellular
Devices/Equipment
Wireless
Wiring/Installation
SECURITY
Access Control
Alarms/Sensors
Services/Platforms
Surveillance Cameras
BUSINESS SUPPORT
Associations/Buying Groups
Distributors/Reps
Operations
Recurring Revenue
Research
Sales/Marketing
Software/Services
Tools/Testers
MARKETS
Builders
Commercial
Design
Europe
Outdoors
Wellness
FOLLOW US ON
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow
  • Follow

© 2023 Emerald X, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

  • ABOUT
  • CAREERS
  • TERMS OF USE
  • PRIVACY POLICY

McIntosh Labs

McIntosh Labs