Claiming Quiet Balancing effort and ease at work.

• Author: Bunch, Woodrie
• Position: BALANCED BOUNDARIES

We know the benefits of effort well.

The drive. The push. The excellence and outcomes that accompany it.

We know what it takes to push ourselves personally, and we've learned how to support our teams in learning this skill too. We know the motivational techniques, the key performance indicators, and the data we need to keep our teams and stakeholders pleased--and we drive our results towards these.

But how many of us know the skill of ease?

Not many, in my experience. Research backs this up too. Whether we look at stress indicators or simple stats related to downtime, we aren't great at stepping into ease. In fact, we seem hard pressed to take time for ourselves outside of work, let alone within company doors. One stat shows that the average US-based worker only takes half of their paid time off--and those are pre-pandemic figures. Post pandemic it's gotten even worse.

Our collective lack of ease is endemic to our current work cultures.

Personally, I hardly know any high-achieving professionals who consistently work less than 50 to 55 hours a week, especially if you count after-hour phone calls, late evening/early morning emails, and all those vacation check-ins.

Yet if we look beyond the work hours, we see a deeper issue. We seem to have forgotten the benefits that ease offers us both personally and professionally. There are benefits that arise with downtime and strategic thinking time Deeper connections with ourselves and others, for instance, which translates to improved relationships and enhanced teamwork. Creativity is born out of this space of stillness, and with it come newly harnessed problem-solving skills and stronger decision making These are the gifts of ease. Ease is not just about chilling out on some beach or unwinding, it's about having the time and space needed in order to connect with ourselves and learning to apply the benefits that connection has offered us.

Luckily, the next generation seems to intuitively get this. In fact, they are leading the charge toward sustainable working hours and balanced work lives. In time, we will see our work worlds shift and trend toward more ease--and this trend will only accelerate once more leaders begin to recognize and capitalize on the improved business outcomes that arise from it.

Tension Between Worlds

For the meantime, though, one major problem remains: we know what we need (more time, space, and ease), but we don't know how to get there yet, given the demands (e.g., how will all...