Go home on time day is on the 24th of September and is part of National Work Life Balance Week.
Thank you to Working Families UK for these great tips on improving the way you work so that you too can go home on time, not just on September 24 but all the time!
How to work harder not smarter
1 – Start small. Choose one particular day to start with, perhaps a Thursday, and make this “the” day you organise your work more carefully and leave work on time. Keep working on your productivity skills and gradually add more days, until you’re just working the hours you want and are accomplishing even better results.
2 – Stop going along with unspoken office “rules”. Instead, commit to stopping work on time. Who decided that you had to work until 7pm? How much is your personal time worth?
3 – Set up activities to do with your family/friends outside of work for when you get home, so you learn to enjoy things other than work.
4 – Do not take work home with you. Train your brain to stop thinking about all the things you have to get done, who you have to call, what meetings you have to set up, and what reports are due tomorrow.
5 – Make sure your work phone is switched off so you can give your family/friends your undivided attention.
6 – Make it a team building activity that everyone ensures and supports each others needs to leave on time on this particular day.
7 – Be efficient in the work you do. Set sensible limits on your work so that it doesn’t eat up the rest of your life. Evaluate the impact of the various types of work you do. Cut back on work which gives relatively little benefit for the time invested.
8 – Make the most of your prime time. We all have a particular time of day when we have lots of energy and enthusiasm and a greater ability to think and concentrate. Work out when you are at your most effective and tackle your most important work then.
9 – Ideally, start meetings right after lunch. Block out your diary from 4pm every day so people don’t schedule late meetings with you. And don’t ask others to begin projects at 4:45pm – respect their right to a life outside work too.
10 – Schedule “working” time. Block off certain hours in your diary for answering messages and getting work done and only accept meetings outside these times (and not last thing at night)
See more tips on going home on time on the Working Families UK website.
To kick start change at your work place get in touch with Employees Matter to design a bespoke program to improve productivity and work practices. Say no to a culture of long hours for long hours sake!
If you were not able to attend the Employees Matter Mental Health Awareness breakfast, here are some of the key recommendations and a bit more about the people who made them.