7 Habits that Seem Lazy (But Actually Let You Get More Done)

In 1850, French economist Claude-Frédéric Bastiat published his famous essay, “Ce qu’on voit et ce qu’on ne voit pas” or, “What is seen and what is unseen.” In it, he argues against the “bad economist” who looks only to the initial effect of actions taken, and not their further consequences.

Bastiat uses the example of a broken shop window. To repair the window, the shop owner has to hire a glass maker. Now the glass maker has money, and can use it to buy further things. Thus, the economy has improved, has it not?

But this only notes the seen, the money spent and glass maker employed, and not the unseen, what could have been bought with the money instead. A bad economist reasons from the seen and argues that we ought to break windows to stimulate the economy. The wise economist knows that breaking things makes people worse off.

That breaking windows is counterproductive is hardly surprising. Yet, in our working lives, many of us are exactly the bad economists Bastiat warned against. We focus on being visibly productive, often subtly undermining the unseen ability to do important work.

Consider the person who stays late at the office every night, to show everyone what a “team player” he is. Except, this causes him to sleep less which makes him sluggish. He misses…