Hi, my name is Kirill, and I’m a workaholic. (Slow unenthused claps in the audience.) Granted, this may not sound all that terrible. Many of you are familiar with the term, “some wear it like a badge of honor”. For some reason, we tend to celebrate the notion that all-nighters and 24/7s are all signs of a well-adjusted human being. I was of the same opinion for the longest time, and now I’m in recovery.
The fact that my story is nothing out of the ordinary is what really speaks volumes about the present situation with workers all around the world. Since the nature of my previous work encapsulated working with documents and metrics, I have developed a soft spot for digits and numbers. All the more disturbing was the realization I had –
I’ve become nothing but a part of statistics.
I wasn’t able to stop worrying. I was one of 33% who took their work on vacation. I was a part of 37% who worked more than 40 hours a week.
What I wasn’t, is a part of 13% who felt engaged.
My main mistake was that I tried to be a people pleaser and simply couldn’t bring myself to say no. And so, my work kept piling up faster than I could manage it. One or two all-nighters here and there might have helped me, but even then it was not by much.
That’s the bitter truth about overworking – extra effort doesn’t mean you get more things done. It just means that you work more.
Work-addiction rarely comes in a form of affection, but rather as a Stockholm syndrome. Every time somebody called me, I had to come up with a new excuse to hang up and stay home. Soon this stopped being a problem, though, as nobody called me anymore.
Friends weren’t the only people I made excuses to. As every other addict, I was very quick to rationalize my own self-destruction. I have to deliver. I just need more money. I promise I will go on vacation this time. Sounds like those opening lines from Adaptation. Sweet-sounding promises that ultimately amounted to nothing, yet I kept promising to keep promises. Not now. One day. In the future.
Or, as Macbeth put it – Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow.
What changed?
Thankfully, it seems like it’s in the past now. I can’t pretend to say that I have Eternal Sunshined this problem from my mind. But at least when I walk outside, the first thought that comes to my mind isn’t, “How much time do I have?” I would have never achieved that and more without Weekdone. And no, I’m not talking about the app Weekdone, I’m talking about the company Weekdone. Luckily for me, when I gave up the previous work and was looking for a new one, I managed to find one that dealt with the framework of Objectives and Key Results. Funny how that happens, huh?
So, this is how I turned my life around, in baby steps.
1. Starting small
I myself always responded better to tactile sensations. When I’m writing, I prefer to feel the paper against my pen. If I’m making a to-do list, I want to physically cross off every item. So, having never used any planning methodology beyond sticking post-it notes on the desk, it was hard at first to embrace OKR. But as I said, baby steps.
For your first time, you should create an objective that has one or two key results at most. Then, if you feel more confident, you can add another objective and throw in a couple of key results. The point is not to overwhelm yourself. Three is considered a powerful number for a reason, and if you want to stay on your toes, three is a perfectly good amount of objectives. Any more than that, and you fall into the old tired pit of, “Where do I begin?”
2. Finding inspirational objectives
A proper objective, as I’ve learned, should be a call-to-action, not a business plan. When coming up with a description for your objective, keep it short and easy to understand. Ideally, every time you read the objective, you have to visualize it in your head. Now, if you want to measure the outcome, you refer to key results. One objective can have multiple key results, and they should be easy to track. You can’t go too vague with them. The more specific the description, the better it is to follow your progress.
3. Keeping it regular
To make OKR work for you, you have to check your objectives and key results on a regular basis. Integrate them into your report, and if you don’t have it, start one immediately. Writing reports is part of OKR; they will allow you to better understand where you went wrong and what you did right. Review your past goals and plan your next ones accordingly. I found that when planning your OKR, it is best to focus on the immediate actions you have to make. Make them a routine.
4. Taking my time
OKR is not magic, nor is it a simple switch. You can’t suddenly will productivity into existence. To make it work, you need some time. Internal changes don’t happen willy-nilly, you have to work on adopting them. It is harder to learn to do something the right way, but it will save you an enormous amount of time in the long run.
Making habits is fun. Just be sure not to take them too seriously.
Hi Kirill,
First … cool name. I’ve never heard it before, and I love running into new people with interesting names.
I enjoyed your approach here, and the infographic is well-thought-out, allowing readers to take in a large amount of information and thought in short order.
I myself mentor teens and young adults; and while I am highly organized and efficient, many of “my kids” aren’t. Schools tend to hand kids rubrics and other tools as a solution; but these don’t necessarily work with students who are too disorganized in thought and action to even know how to use and organize these tools.
Similarly, I find that workaholic adults — as you’ve pointed out — aren’t necessarily getting more done. Like my kids, many of whom will spend hours on assignments or studies that should only take 45 minutes or so, the problem isn’t desire. They don’t like feeling stuck, spending all of their free time on schoolwork, having tension with parents, and still performing poorly. They simply don’t have the foundational tools inside to organize thoughts and actions, or to process multi-step information (e.g., often what looks like a simple “do X” really relies on a person’s ability to parse out the steps A, B, C and D that must happen in order for X to be accomplished).
While I’m well familiar with the concept of OKR (similar to the general principles of “SMART” goals), I am only becoming familiar with Workweek here via your post; so I don’t know much about the inner workings. I do hope, however, that Workweek includes (or is open to include) the availability of step-by-step TRAINING along with any tools they offer. As you rightly said, “start small.” It’s just that some well-meaning people don’t know what that means; they can’t figure out where to start — and that is why, like those kids I mentor, they waste so much time “working” in the first place. In other words, we can’t assume that all people, given better tools, will increase productivity and efficiency. Some, by virtue of real neurology, need a certain amount of hand-holding along the way as they learn to USE those tools.
Again, I’m happy to be acquainted with you. I can sense your passion for the topic, and I enjoy your voice. Including movie references is brill, as well. Makes some statistical and heavy information feel relatable and casual. Kudos.
Erik
Thanks for your comment, Erik. I won’t lie, no one ever complimented my name. It feels refreshing.
About starting small. I feel that this principle is applicable to pretty much every aspect of our lives, be it work, art, driving lessons, or romance. The fallacy of our thinking is that we don’t consider the planning stage a part of our work. Which is erroneous. To put this into perspective, planning, editing and proof-reading this article took me almost the same amount as writing the full draft. Without planning, this would probably end up in my drawer among other unfinished projects.
There is a very nice article on our blog that gives some sensible tips on productivity: https://blog.weekdone.com/top-10-ways-for-a-productive-week/
I especially admire the one tip that says “Plan your next week on Friday”. Typically, my Fridays are less hectic than other workdays, and I dedicate some time to writing a basic outline of things I want to do next week. Got to say, works like a charm.
Just as you said, even with tools aimed at helping you to start small, you have to – again – start small. If you’re interested in Weekdone, you can check out our blog and read on some topics we have covered.
Godspeed!