On day 1 of my last job with a private equity fund, I wanted to know whether they worked late nights routinely or followed reasonable work hours.
But how could I ask? In prestigious post-MBA jobs like consulting, banking, and investing, talking about work hours is a strict no-no. But I was already done with meaningless late nights.
So I asked one of the partners, “Where do you have dinner?”
A bit perplexed, he replied, “Why? At home, of course!” And I got my answer. 😊
If I owe my health to anyone, it is to my last company. Their normal work hours allowed me to work out, run, and do all the good things I had fancied.
But this also shows how unnecessarily complicated we have made this world. Why should working reasonable hours be considered a bad thing? And why are these late nights required?
To some extent, it is just the ambitious nature of these companies. But a lot of it is also mismanagement of time and old habits. Every organization with long hours should do an audit of where all the hours go — why does it take so long?
We have to stop making excuses for treating people poorly.
Hard work is focused thoughtful work, not donkey’s labor. And even donkeys should be treated humanely. 😎
– Rajan