Admit it: You want to work less. And work smarter. You want to enjoy your free time, but you need to make good money. And of course, you want keep learning and enjoy your career at the same time. Whether you work in a so-called creative industry or not, balancing personal autonomy with productivity and great teamwork is a challenge we all face. Is there a possible solution to this seemingly impossible equation?
1. Monday morning: Start focus.
Begin by gathering all your team members in a room where you’ll spend 20 minutes reviewing the challenges of the week. Each person writes their three personal challenges for the week on a post-it, puts it on wall and reads it allowed it to the group.
2. Wednesday morning: Share with others.
At Base Design, we call this the creative meeting, but it can be adapted to fit many types of businesses. This time, everyone is present, from the office manager to creative and financial directors, and you’ll spend about three hours getting on the same page about all aspects of the business.
3. Thursday lunch: Forget work.
This is the true feel-good rendezvous of the week. It’s a very simple concept: One staff member takes a turn cooking for the rest of the team. There’s no work, no agenda, just time to enjoy a meal and the company of your colleagues.
4. Friday afternoon: Look back.
Time for a review of the week. Duration is variable. This is when the team gathers and each one gets returns to his or her Monday post-it. Did everyone fulfill their three challenges? Yes, great. No? Let’s analyze why, discuss it with the others and learn from it. Remember, the goal is to work less and better — and here’s an opportunity to discuss how to do just that.
5. The rest of the week? Full autonomy.
We’re all adults here. Each member of the team is certainly mature enough to organize the time spent on their own projects and meetings, inside and outside the company, and combine it with the demands of their personal life in a way that works for them. No judgment, no second guessing. Just deliver good work on time, and everyone is happy.
Clay Serenbetz 