What once made Jack a dull boy....now makes him a dull employee!

"It's not the hours you put in your work that counts, it's the work you put in the hours." - Sam Ewing

I think this one ought to be printed in bold, Arial Black (probably), font size 10,000 (whatever) and put up in the reception areas of most companies that I know of. I just can’t help feeling confused when I come across supervisors who complain about a shortage in the number of hours their team is putting in without even attempting to understand whether the output expected of the team has been delivered (if it has been delivered in a duration that’s less than average, that’s more a time for celebration than anything else). And, in the first place, there might actually be a need for supervisors to understand what kind of investment (time) the output expected calls for – maybe there was a gross overestimation. And, of course, at times, even if there is a need for spending more time every day due to underestimation, what its impact is on the quality of the work and what its impact is on the people themselves are serious questions that have to necessarily be posed. Take a simple example - look at students who pour over their books for months together without understanding what in the world they are looking at as opposed to those who understand the concepts quickly and move on to something else (maybe outside of regular work!). You know who’s likely to be referred to as “that bright kid”. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy and further on…a dull employee. :P