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Not I. That's a fast track to unemployment in my line of work. I'm usually at my computer working for about 7.5 hours of the day so I rounded up and chose 8 which does not include my 1 hour for lunch but does include my 2 15 minute breaks.
Yeah, thankfully I stay busy all day too. The people who claim to only do 3-4 hours of work per day may lose their jobs when someone in management wises up and trims the fat.
It really varies with the company. My last position they literally wanted you moving nonstop, and it was an office job.... I've had other jobs where I've done as little as 3-4 hours of actual work, and I have a couple test engineer friends who tell me they only work 2 hours a day and the rest of the time they sit around doing whatever and wait for tests to run. The worst part is they are government workers and make 65k a year.
With my job it's possible for me fake it and only work a few hours per day, but there are consequences for that that come up later. Essentially I make my life miserable in the future by doing that in the present.... requiring a 10-15 hour day or two toward the end of the week - sometimes I've had to work from 6am to 1-2am the next morning as a result for 1-2 days of the week because of that.
I'd say on average, I put in around 30-35 serious hours a week, about 15 more so-so hours, about 10 more light hours. If I FOCUS I can keep the total under 40... but focusing intensely all the time is hard.
Reminds me of the scene in office space when Peter is talking to the Bobs.
I probably do about 4 hours of actual work in a given day, but that's because I am highly efficient at what I do. I find it too easy. Hence why I'll soon be moving to another job that should be more challenging.
Best movie EVER! When I had an office job, I probably did about 2 hours actual work a day. It was so boring and tedious I used to hope I'd get in a car accident on the way to work so I wouldn't have to go in. Now I work as a teacher, and I work every minute I am at work and then some. It's actually easier than being bored.
The question comes up from time to time. The problem is that "work" is defined differently. And can't always be quantifiable. For example: A retail clerk who's job is to help customers just completed an 8 hour shift. During that time they spent approximately 75 minutes actually engaging with customers, and another 60 minutes cleaning/stocking/straightening products/etc. . The rest was just chatting with co-wokers as business was slow that day. Would it be fair to say they only worked for just over 2hours when they were there for 8 hours?
On the flip side, a sales manager takes 3 potential clients golfing, bought them lunch, then came back to the office and spent 2 hours writing proposals. One of those clients eventually agrees to the purchase of a $1 million dollars worth of services. How many hours did the sales manager work that day? Does it really matter?
Quote:
Originally Posted by DorianRo
3-4 hours of actual work. But being Salaried you still have to stick around even when you have nothing to do in many places these days.. Which is stupid. So its basically sticking around at work showing the "face time" even when there isn't much to do until the next day. It sucks. Wish there were plentiful jobs left to just work from home. Instead of being required to show "face time" at work and put extra pointless hours in
I agree. It is stupid. Find a new job. I know it's easier said than done. But there are companies out there that treat people like adults.
Out of 9 hours in the office, perhaps 4 are traditional work. But like another said, when I'm in the office, it's all work in the sense that you are partly being paid "in case something comes up." But I also think working 100% of the time in a white collar job is a false expectation. At a minimum with lunch, bathroom breaks, filling up water bottle (all things needed just to live), you're already only working 7 out of 9 hours. Shouldn't white collar work almost always be about what you accomplished, not how long it took.
But mental breaks, chatting, etc. are what my brain requires to function. It's what makes me productive the other hours, and sometimes management thinks by forcing face time, they got more productivity out of you, how silly. Corporate America is one of the only places that punishes you for being efficient. Was it Bill Gates or Steve Jobs who said that Lazy/Smart people are the ones you should hire, because they are efficient and know how to take short cuts.
Early in my career I was the guy who tried to do the right thing by asking my boss for more work, but it always came back to bite me. They ultimately never did because it was too much work for them to find work worthy of handing off, and it also opens up your work to being criticized more since "you had extra time to make it perfect." Not any more.
I agree. It is stupid. Find a new job. I know it's easier said than done. But there are companies out there that treat people like adults.
That would be a pretty silly reason to uproot a family for and change careers for. My employer is of the type where I need to stay until roughly the same time regardless of whether I have work to do, but the pay is unbelievable and the work is interesting. I'm willing to give them ~40 hours of my life every week in exchange for my salary; what they choose to do with those 40 hours is up to them.
I don't think they're crazy for wanting me here from the beginning of the work day until the end of the work day- sometimes things will come up at 5pm after a 2 hour lull. During that lull (obviously I'm presently in a lull since I'm on CD), I catch up on my professional reading, pay personal bills, do lots of productive things and sometimes do not-so-productive things.
I'm certainly not going to leave my job just so that I can be "treated like an adult".
Quote:
Originally Posted by Citykid3785
But like another said, when I'm in the office, it's all work in the sense that you are partly being paid "in case something comes up." But I also think working 100% of the time in a white collar job is a false expectation.
Totally agree.
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