I just got around to reading the June issue of the Harvard Business Review. Of special interest to me was a series of articles about managing change. The one that made my day was “The Productivity Paradox: How Sony Pictures Gets More out of People by Demanding Less” by Tony Schwartz. Starting at the top and working down through the organization, the article discussed how leaders were coached to add rituals to their days that balanced focus and renewal. For example, instead of reading email first thing in the morning, they would set aside 60 to 90 minutes of uninterrupted time to focus on the top two or three priorities set at the end of the previous work day. Senior executives made an agreement that they were not expected to respond to email outside of 8:00am to 8:00pm weekdays. If something is urgent, they pick up the phone. They took back their lunch hours and made it a habit to send a note of appreciation to someone who works for them at least once a week. They shared their passions and values and faced conflict by using a code word when they felt another person was not being “up front” in meetings or conversations. When they felt anger or stress coming on, they took walks around the facility and thought about their feelings.
As these rituals and agreements were cascaded throughout the organization, a culture of trust was created and two things happened. People were more engaged with each other and their work and, as a result, the quality of decisions and performance improved. Second, the quality of their lives outside of work improved as well, because not only did they have more time, but the same practices they applied at work were just as effective in all of life.
It’s rare to see such articles in the HBR, so it was very encouraging to see this type of thought and practice prominent is such a widely-read, peer-reviewed journal. It was a personal boost because lately I’ve been a little too “heads down” in my teaching and volunteer work that I was beginning to sacrifice some of my own renewal rituals. Reading that article put an end to that. I’m back to my leisurely, early morning jogs, with the i{Pod on a random shuffle of my favorite music and chapters from Andrew Weill’s “Healthy Aging” and Dr. Michael Beckwith’s “Spiritual Liberation”. It’s OK if I don’t get started with my work until 10:00am. I get so much more done by the end of the day!
