Revive Yourself with a Revised Work Schedule
May is “Revise Your Work Schedule Month”! In today’s world with artificial lights, caffeine, and more responsibilities than ever, most work schedules have changed drastically.
Do you know which schedule works best for you? Below we cover a few of the most common work schedules along with our pros and cons, take a look and see which one is the best fit for you.
1) The 9 to 5
This is probably the most “traditional” work schedule, at least for most of the workforce in America. Do you know where the 9-5 work day schedule originated though?
A Welsh social reformer, Richard Owen, was the first one to suggest an 8 hour work day during the Industrial Revolution, when most people were working 16+ hours a day. Why 8 hours? Well there are 24 hours in a day so you divide it by 3, 8 hours for work, 8 hours for leisure, and 8 hours for sleep.
Learn more about the origins of the 9 to 5 work schedule.
Pros:
- A structured schedule that rarely changes.
- Traditional, for most corporations.
- Understood by majority of Americans.
- Works well for most daycare pick up and drop offs
Cons:
- The expectation is you arrive by 9 and work til 5, with a lunch break.
- Repetitive. Monday to Friday it’s the same routine.
- Difficult to fit the personal appointments and errands, like dentist appointments when they have the same working hours as you.
*With a lot of the companies we know 9 to 5 is a way of the past, and something like 8 to 5 or 9 to 6 is more realistic because you still get 40 hours of work and lunch breaks. Obviously the standard can differ greatly based on the company.
2) Work from Home
Working from home has on the rise for a variety of reasons. The increase of affordable and integrated technology allows people to video conference and connect to their computers and other remote employees. This flexibility has allowed companies to hire the best talent, no matter where in the world they live.
New York to LA? No problem.
New York to London? No problem.
Real time work can be done even when thousands of miles lie between two people. But not everything is perfect when working from home there can be some significant challenges that come with mixing work and home life in the same space.
Pros:
- No daily commute. Saves on gas, tools, wear and tear on the car or a commuter pass.
- No morning stress of getting out the door or bumper to bumper traffic.
- Typically it allows for a little more flexibility in working hours.
- It’s your personal office space to allow you to decorate as YOU see fit.
- A very flexible dress code, especially if you are not on video during the day.
Cons:
- Personal distractions.
- Less structure.
- Missing out on the typical office experience and water cooler talk.
- No daily face to face interaction with co-workers and on the fly collaboration.
- Many people struggle with management of time and guilt. They end up working longer hours because they may take a break to get something done, like laundry.
Find out more of the pros and cons of working from home. Do you work from home? What is the biggest challenge you have noticed?
