Read this Article “Relax! You’ll Be More Productive.”

Yesterday, I read the Tony Schwartz article “Relax! You’ll Be More Productive” in the New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/opinion/sunday/relax-youll-be-more-productive.html).  It got me thinking about a lot of things.  Productivity is something that I–and my husband, as well– value highly, but I spend a lot of time questioning my productivity and feeling bad about myself if I don’t feel “productive.”  I love this article for many reasons, but especially because it places “productivity” squarely in the realm of balance.  Balance is another value that I consider highly important in my life.

I recognize that in our current culture, balance seems like a luxury because balance requires a certain amount of freedom to choose what you want to do with your time.  And I recognize that many people lack freedom in time.  I hope that in time, companies will follow the research and give workers more flexibility about how to use their time to promote better productivity and increased satisfaction at work.

The article outlines how using time more efficiently–90 minute periods of work with rest periods–helps people to do more in less time.  This also reminds me of the Montessori method of giving kids extended work time to complete their work.  I hope that more voices on this subject come to the fore so that as a culture we can continue to increase our productivity, while reducing stress instead of increasing it.