As managers, idleness is viewed as an evil to fight. Much like a disease, if we detect symptoms on one staff, we must ensure that it is treated in a timely manner. Partly because it will make us look bad as managers; and partly to prevent the disease to spread to other workers… because, you know, this might impact the sacrosanct team’s efficiency!

As a result, any sign of idleness is spied, and anything that could create idleness is eradicated. So behold: real time production lines (you sneeze, you fail!), glass walls (inspired from jail’s panopticon layout, so real that you better laugh at it), open space office (I can hear you, see you, smell you…), rotating functions and desks (so that you can’t befriend your colleague for too long), time-card segmentation (some companies even ask employees to record toilet time!), and so it goes into the great improvement of our work environment… (note 1)

Idleness boosts imagination and creativity

Idleness however is very important for human brain’s development. It is recommended for children to remain idle and ‘bored’ (Parent Co article, or Psychology Today article for example). Idleness boosts imagination and creativity. From personal experience again, for the past two decades as controllers, cigarette or coffee breaks with front line workers generated more ideas to effectively improve efficiency, than any well crafted .ppt presentation from pricey external consultants. So economically speaking, considering the added value from the new process implementations vs. idle time on production, these breaks created value! I repeat, these breaks created economic value!… but they look bad. They give a poor opinion of the company and its workers, and oh horror, of its management. (note 2).

So idleness can be source of efficiency. It is so obvious that management consultants, never shy to repackage and sell old time common sense they help to destroy, are now promoting new ‘stress free’ processes to ‘ignite’ creativity… so yeah, to basically recreate idleness, but in a hype way you can sell…

As for Effy you ask?

Well, sometimes the morning libertine likes to down on people, in their idle time…

G.M.

Note 1: from personal experience these generally does not increase employee satisfaction, and apart from very selected industries, these do not increase efficiency in the long run; but who cares… it’s trendy and makes the manager look good.

Note 2: managers’ coffee breaks look normal, workers’ coffee breaks look bad… double standard I know.

 

More insights:

The Paradoxical power of idleness – The Simple Dollar

Rethinking Idleness productivity and time management: A call to do nothing more – Through Research Gate

Time management can ruin your productivity – Fast Company