There’s a New Epidemic Affecting Startups, and it’s called Work-Life Integration
We’ve all heard of work-life balance, but work-life integration is taking over the industry and causing significant damage to both employees and productivity.
During the industrial revolution, work was hourly, and it made sense. Everything was done by assembly line or by operating some sort of basic, repetitive machine, so one could easily see the correlation between hours spent at work and value generated.
After WWII, the “9-to-5" era began. And while this system made some sense, it gave rise to the realization that people could simply do the bare minimum to get through the day, leave at 5pm, and get paid the same regardless.
It took over 50 years for this system to begin to change.
You’d think that this change would be back to a value-based system: “do your work well, meet your deadlines, and then your time is your own”, and for some of us, this is the case. Slack is a perfect example of a hugely successful company that employs this strategy.
However, for many, this change was in the opposite direction: “do your work well and meet your deadlines, then engage in social activities with work friends, play ping pong at work, hang out at work, and spend as much time here as possible.”
Google even took this idea so far as to create a “campus” which has residences, free gourmet food, free haircuts, multiple fitness centres, a meditation garden, nap pods, full kitchens and more. To some, all of these “perks” sound amazing and generous, but to me, these “perks” are nothing more than a ploy to keep workers at work; an investment in taking away any excuse not to be there.
Need to go to the dentist? We have a free one.
Need to take care of your kids? Bring them to our free daycare centre.
Need to relax and decompress? Have a free massage from our in-house masseuse.
Am I the only one that gets a tad freaked out by this big-brother-style turn of events?
As someone who aims to be an entrepreneur, I plan to integrate my life with my work, but I cannot begin to fathom trying to convince my employees to spend as much time at work as possible.
It’s not their dream to build my company. It’s mine.
And if I become so conceited and egotistical that I begin to believe that it should be their dream to build my company, I hope that someone will knock some sense into me (I’m sure my Italian in-laws will come in handy here). There are many people who do want to help others build their dream, and I do want to give credit where it’s due. Everyone has different skill sets, and different wants/needs when it comes to a career. This is why we are able to support a growing and diverse economy.
This is a real issue though that is prevalent at countless startups. CEOs become so passionate and obsessive about their companies, that they believe employees should be kissing the ground they walk on for the chance to work there. No matter how many times the CEO says things like “this isn’t my company, it’s our company” or “this isn’t just my vision, it’s our vision,” the fact still remains that it is his/her company, and the employees are being paid to help build it, not to make it their lives.
The issue gets even worse when there is a mix at a company of people wanting work/life balance, and people wanting work/life integration.
For some, work/life integration is what they want; they’re happy to have their lives revolve around work, and for work to be the source of their social lives. However, many workers want work/life balance, but feel that it reflects poorly on them when they work hard from 9 to 5 and then leave, while others stay from 9 until 9. Yes, those that stay longer generally work at a slower pace, take more breaks, and socialize more, however there is still an unacknowledged belief that “the more time spent at work, the better the employee”. Numerous studies have proven that this is not only incorrect, but actually the opposite of the truth, and that once employees have worked 50 hours in a week, their productivity declines and any extra time spent at work is pointless. And that isn’t even taking into account: sleep deprivation, risk of burnout, absenteeism, or any of the other countless work-related health issues that are on the rise.
This is why it is so important for companies (especially startups) to clearly define their culture and values as a group. If a company hires only people that want work-life integration, then there is absolutely nothing wrong with creating a culture around that. The same goes for work-life balance.
However, it is extremely rare that companies with over 20 employees, manage to be this binary.
That is where defining a group culture comes in. Clearly establishing expectations, values, and policies can make all the difference in creating an environment open to all work-styles.
People cannot be told what their values are, and people cannot be told to care about something.
The best thing that a company can do is recognize that each employee is their own person, with their own unique wants, needs, and beliefs; and that the only way that they will ever get the most out of those people is by listening rather than telling, understanding rather than convincing, and by expressing appreciation rather than entitlement.
The thoughts and ideas communicated in this blog are solely those of the author and do not reflect those of any affiliated persons or organizations. They are also by NO MEANS indicative of the company the author currently works for, which he really loves due to its remarkable outlook on work/life balance :)
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